Born Broke: New babies pay for bust BritainFamily Action is warning that new parents and babies will bear the brunt of cuts to support for families. Born Broke, Family Action's report on the impact of welfare changes on new parents with children details the cuts which will leave many new families struggling with more children at risk of being born into poverty. Read our report and press notice now.
Universal Credit: Marginal Returns? Investigation into the impact of the Universal Credit on Marginal Deduction Rates Shows it could hit Working FamiliesFamily Action analysis shows that as many as 1.35 million families could find it harder to progress in work under the Universal Credit. Read our report and press statement.
Poor Shouldn’t Pay Penance for their Disadvantage, Says Family ActionPoor families should not pay the price for their disadvantage, Family Action Chief Executive Helen Dent warns as the Government publishes the Universal Credit, Welfare that Works White Paper.
Pushed into povertyLow income families will lose out as a result of the Spending Review and Emergency Budget. Read our report and press statement on the negative impact of 21 changes.
Read Family Action's response to the Spending ReviewFamily Action is concerned that vulnerable and low income families have been cast adrift in the Spending Review. Read our comments here.
Look Out for Louise: Family Action Challenges London MPs on Housing Benefit Family Action service user Louise is one of thousands of families who could be affected by changes to housing benefit. Join our campaign to tell MPs to Look Out for Louise.
The Cap Doesn't Fit: Assessment of the Impact of Welfare Caps on Sample Households Family Action is concerned about the impact of the Government's Welfare Cap proposals. They will hit vulnerable families hard and introduce a couple penalty into the system. Read our press release and download our report here.
The Smart Money: Making Tomorrow Better for Children and Families On June 16th 2010 we hosted an event in Parliament with Action for Children and Children England calling on all MPs to work with us to secure investment in early intervention services for children and families to break intergenerational cycles of deprivation. 45 MPs came to hear the arguments for early intervention and express their interest in working with us.
Tim Loughton, MP Coalition Minister has said he is committed to early intervention and support for vulnerable families. Now we need to make sure the commitment turns into practice. Read a transcript of his speech at our Parliamentary event with Action for Children and Children England.
If you would like to talk to your MP about supporting our work, visit the Ways to Get Involved page.
Download The Smart Money pamphlet to find out more about what we are asking for and why. You can also read more about the research showing the effectiveness of early intervention in the Backing the Future report.
Party ConferencesGoing to the party conferences this year? Family Action will be there with the Family Room group of charities, which is sponsored by Mothercare.
We will jointly host a fringe meeting on the issue of family support at the Labour Party Conference in Manchester on Monday 27 September at 12.30 – 14.30pm. Why not join us? Find out more about this event.
Response to the June BudgetRead our policy statement in response to announcements made in the June 2010 emergency Budget. We are especially concerned about the changes to housing benefit and how these will impact on vulnerable families. You can find out more about this issue and help support our efforts to protect these families here.
Building Bridges local practice example published onlineWe submitted a report on our Building Bridges service as a local practice example for the Centre for Excellence and Outcomes in Children and Young People's Services. You can read the submission on the C4EO website.
New report published on our home-based family support work
We have just brought out a new report detailing findings from our home-based work with families. Working within the familiar home setting is crucial for dealing with the multiple challenges that some vulnerable families face, and supporting them to improve parenting, grow in confidence, and encouraging them to access mainstream services and reduce their social isolation. Download the report to find out more.
Response to the Families and Relationships Green Paper
The consultation period on the DCSF's Families and Relationships Green Paper Support for All closed in April 2010. Read extracts from Family Action's response to questions on strengthening relationships, ending stigma around seeking support, and family friendly services, among other topics.
We need a Fairness Test
Family Action is part of a coalition of organisations calling for the main party leaders to commit to a Fairness Test, to ensure the poorest in society do not shoulder the burden of reducing our national debt. The test would ensure that major tax or spending changes are rigorously assessed for their impact on inequality and ensure that governments cannot make major changes without being aware of the consequences for inequality and the knock-on effects on the cohesiveness and wellbeing of the whole society. You can find out more, and support the call, by visiting the Equality Trust website.
The Robin Hood Tax
We are members of the Robin Hood Tax campaign, which seeks a small levy on financial transactions to help fund the fight against poverty at home and abroad. To find out more visit the campaign website and see their great new video.