Members endorse a range of measures to tackle child poverty,
including affordable school uniforms (93%), free internet access
to children in households on Universal Credit (79%), and food
vouchers for children on Free School Meals during school holidays
(86%).
The State of Education survey is an extensive look at the
current mood of the profession, including teachers, heads and
leaders, and what they wish to see from Government. We are
releasing the findings over the course of Annual
Conference.
Impact on Learning
The consequences of child poverty for learning and engagement
in the classroom were all to clear to NEU members responding
to this survey. We asked them to identify the impacts on
learning and they told us:
All impacts had been witnessed by the majority of teachers in
English state schools, with the most commonly-reported
categories being tiredness/fatigue (87%) and an inability to
concentrate (81%). Two thirds (66%) had seen pupils attend
school in unclean, damaged or ill-fitting clothes/shoes, and
58% reported pupils not having an appropriate or well-fitting
school uniform or PE kit. 57% saw signs of hunger during the
school day, and 55% of respondents said that disadvantaged
children in their school were frequently ill.
Child poverty has sharply increased in the UK and this is set
to worsen with the cost-of-living crisis. Child Poverty
Action Group reports that 4.3 million children were already
living in poverty in the UK in 2019/20.
Respondents to our latest survey, told us:
“Students living in poverty are irrefutably disadvantaged in
practical, social, emotional, behavioural and academic skills
- even without the pandemic."
"We have a child who used to wrap up his school dinner to
take home as he was never sure if there would be any
dinner."
"We have had pupils sleeping on the floor or with severe
overcrowding in their house."
What Needs to Happen
When five different measures were proposed that could be used
to support pupils living in poverty or on a low income,
teachers showed strong support for all of them.
The white space on each bar denotes ”neither agree nor
disagree” responses, but even with this accepted some 93%
felt certain that school uniform affordability was essential.
86% agreed that food vouchers should be provided during
school holidays for children in receipt of free school meals.
84% welcomed the idea of a new technology budget for all
state schools, and 79% wanted to see free internet access for
children in households on Universal Credit. 72% of those with
a view believed that the provision of free school meals for
all primary school pupils – as planned in Wales – would make
a difference.
We also invited respondents to the survey to put forward
examples of their own school’s efforts to support
disadvantaged pupils and students.
"A number of schools I regularly visit provide breakfast in
the form of free hot toasted bagels every morning to every
child. This is to help with hunger and ensure that they can
start the day with food inside them enabling them to
concentrate."
"We have had to create a food bank within the school during
the pandemic as so many of our families struggled. We had to
do a lot of food drops during lockdown and still hold an open
food bank to our families every two weeks as they are still
struggling and would have no food without us."
"I've been working really hard at building confidence in
students and having an open-door policy for students to come
and talk to me, building strong relationships with
them."
"Our head teacher regularly buys winter coats, shoes and
other warm clothes for pupils."
Commenting on the findings of the survey, Dr Mary Bousted,
Joint General Secretary of the National Education Union,
said:
“Our members know all too well the impacts on learning of
child poverty and have borne witness to the worsening problem
of poverty in society in recent years. The NEU is proud of
all those school leaders, teachers and support staff who
looked out for every child in their care during the pandemic
and continue to do so. Where government dithered or fought
pointlessly over laptops and free school meals, our members
were getting the job done – and making a difference to many
young lives. The NEU’s £1 million effort to support schools
with essentials was also part of this mission to support the
most disadvantaged in our society.
“What is all too clear from today’s survey finding is that
this work is far from finished. It is long overdue that
government fixes the visible inequalities in schools which
are completely within their gift to correct.
“But schools cannot counter the deep inequality in home
learning environments and family income alone. The government
must urgently commit to a cross-department child poverty
strategy. Regrettably, the Schools White Paper has nothing to
say on this vital issue – instead continuing with the
government’s tin-eared, skewed, ideological priorities of
marketisation. It should not have to be a point of debate
that disadvantaged children are the most vulnerable to
learning loss and need the full support of government. must fix his policy of
half-measures when it comes to education recovery.”
Editor’s Note
