Our mission is to give every child in High Peak the very best start at life

Last week I took part in the Granada Debate. One of the topics we discussed was the rise in child poverty. Too many children are going to school hungry because their families can’t afford to give them a good breakfast. A headteacher on the programme explained that things are so bad that many teachers are having to put their hand in their own pocket to help feed pupils at their schools.

Too many children’s life chances are being scarred by rising poverty. This does not just harm children’s lives now, it damages their future prospects and holds back our economic potential as a country. In High Peak we have seen a staggering 50% increase in the number of our children living in relative poverty since 2015.

This is in stark contrast to the last Labour Government that lifted 600,000 children out of poverty. The challenge is how we do this again but with far less public money available due to the dire economic position Britain is in after 14 years of Conservative governments. 

The first step we will take is to introduce fully funded breakfast clubs for every primary school in England. The guarantee of a full stomach at the start of every school day will be life changing for so many children here in High Peak and across the country.

We will pay for this by ending the VAT tax break for private schools. This is a difficult choice but when money is so tight we cannot justify continuing to give a 20% percent discount to the most privileged when the rest of our children in state schools are not getting the support they need.

We have also extended the household support fund which was due to end in September. The Household Support Fund provides assistance to households most in need, including families with children of all ages.

This is only the start of our mission to give every child the very best start at life. The Prime Minster has created a new taskforce to start immediate work on a new, ambitious Child Poverty Strategy. Recognising the wide-ranging causes of child poverty the Taskforce is expected to consider how we can use all levers related to household income as well as employment, housing, children’s health, childcare and education to improve children’s experiences and chances at life.

For me there is nothing more important than tackling the scourge of poverty that holds back the life chances of too many children in High Peak. I hope that by the end of this Parliament I can go back into those Granada studios knowing we have turned things around, with child poverty falling not growing in High Peak.