Islington signs up to tackle child poverty » Local Government » 24dash.com

Islington Council set out more of its plans for combating child poverty in the borough this morning (Wednesday 19 November) at the London Child Poverty Summit.

The council will use its role as a major local employer to offer more flexible, child-friendly working hours. Job adverts and work placements will be targeted at parents and recruitment sessions held in some of the most deprived estates in the borough. More support will also be provided for unemployed and low-income parents including advice on benefits, childcare options and training.

Islington hosted the summit, at the recently opened Golden Lane Campus in EC1, a brand new, council-funded, state-of-the-art building which houses two primary schools and a children’s centre. Golden Lane Campus is located in the ward of Bunhill, one of the most deprived areas in Islington, with some of the worst income deprivation levels affecting children in the country. Twenty-two per cent of residents in the ward receive benefits, compared with fourteen per cent nationally and in London.

Leader of Islington Council, James Kempton is determined that Islington will lead the way in reducing child poverty. He said:

"As a nation we need to get serious about the levels of poverty that exist in our communities and the way this blights the lives of countless children. It was good to see agreement from members across the political spectrum this morning that tackling child poverty has to be a priority for all of us. The Government has so far failed to dramatically cut child poverty which means the task for the rest of us now is a lot harder, particularly in the current economic situation. In hosting this major summit, Islington is demonstrating our determination to get a grip on this long-term problem once and for all. We have already been working closely with the Child Poverty Action Group and we’ll be building on that work.

“I am very proud that one of Islington’s new, first class schools was chosen to host this prestigious event. Providing the very best facilities in one of the most deprived areas of Islington is symbolic of the important role local authorities play in breaking the link between poverty and educational underachievement.”

Many of the initiatives discussed at the summit will build upon the Child Poverty Toolkit that Islington Council and local partners helped to develop. The web based guide offers practical tools and advice for councils across the country so they can ensure that policies and services are geared towards removing barriers that stop parents from getting into work.

Islington Council put forward nine pledges aimed at tackling child poverty at the summit.

Councillor Kempton added: “We all agreed at the summit this morning to a number of pledges; making it easier for parents to get jobs, ensuring employees get the benefits they are owed, making childcare facilities more accessible and setting up apprenticeships. In Islington our aim is to help at least 900 people a year take up training and enter employment, and we will be targeting our support to parents including many of those using the children’s centre at Golden Lane.

“We are currently setting up apprenticeships within the council and are working with local businesses, the voluntary sector and other public sector partners to find additional apprenticeship schemes that give priority to young people from deprived backgrounds. Pilot schemes are also planned with housing partners, giving housing services’ staff opportunities to refer tenants to appropriate employment support services.”

Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, Children’s Minister, Beverley Hughes, and a number of other London leaders also attended the event at Golden Lane Campus. The London Child Poverty Pledge signatories agreed to establish a London wide target to raise the number of parents in employment by three per cent by 2013 and to reach the Government’s target of eradicating national child poverty by 2020.

The morning summit was followed by a conference, which will gave an opportunity for a wide range of organisations including local authorities, public services and charities to share and learn from good practice, and to discuss how to deliver different aspects of the pledge.

ENDS.

For more information, contact Caroline Horrocks, Islington Council Media Officer on 020 7527 1855.

Notes to editors

·Golden Lane Campus opened in April 2008 and is home to Fortune Park Children’s Centre, Prior Weston Primary School and the Primary Section of Richard Cloudesley Special Education Needs School.

·The Child Poverty Unit is a taskforce made up of representatives from the Department of Children Schools and Family, the Department for Work and Pensions, Her Majesty’s Treasury.

·The London Child Poverty Summit will be held on 19 November 2008 at the Golden Lane Children’s Centre, Whitecross Street, London, EC1Y 8JA.

·The London Child Poverty Pledge: To improve progress towards ending child poverty by 2020, we will ensure that the parental employment rate in London rises by more than three percentage points by 2013. To achieve that target and support working families, we will make significant improvements to:
•The maternal part time employment rate
•The take up of Child Tax Credits by eligible working families,
•The use of formal childcare, measured through the number of families benefiting from the childcare element of Working Tax Credit.

·The lone parent employment rate in London has risen from 39.1% in 1999 to 45.3% in 2008. The employment rate for partnered parents has risen from 73.4% to 74.8%.