Autism charity disappointed with latest Households Below Average Income (HBAI) statistics

TreeHouse, the national charity for autism education, welcomes the focus in two reports out this week on children with disabilities and child poverty. However, the charity is disappointed that the figures show much more needs to be done in order to tackle these issues for good.

Both the Households Below Average Income (HBAI) statistics and the UK Childrens Commissioners Report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child have shown that eradicating child poverty, including the severe poverty often faced by children with disabilities, is still a long way off.

Linda Redford, Director of Development & Public Affairs at TreeHouse, said: TreeHouse believes that children with disabilities need to be a key focus of the Governments strategy to end child poverty. Families with children with autism are at high risk of experiencing poverty, not only in a financial sense but also in terms of quality of life.

The UK Commissioners report importantly highlights the major gaps in service provision; and inequalities in services and outcomes for families of children with autism. Specifically that the education system is failing to meet the needs of children with autism.

Large numbers of children with autism are excluded from school because their disability is misunderstood and mismanaged. Families have to fill gaps in provision, and all too often this means that parents need to give up paid employment which places them under great financial and emotional stress.

As eradicating child poverty, including the severe poverty often faced by children with disabilities, is still a long way off, TreeHouse has been supporting the Campaign to End Child Poverty and will continue to do so in light of these latest findings.

A spokesperson from the Campaign to End Child Poverty said: "We are disappointed that the HBAI statistics released today show that the number of children living in poverty rose slightly from the previous year. The impact of the £1bn the Government spent in the March budget isn't reflected in these figures, which show both the size of the challenge, but also the action the Government must take. Poverty has a direct impact on every aspect of a child's life, as a member of the Campaign to End Child Poverty we are calling on the Government to commit the £3bn needed to halve child poverty by 2010 and make a real difference to a million children's lives."