Poverty and child health - views from the frontline

In this report from May 2017,, RCPCH and Child Poverty Action Group explored the state of child poverty in the UK. We used views from the College's membership to form a picture of what was happening on the frontline in communities across the UK.

According to the latest official data, four million children in the UK live in poverty after housing costs. Projections indicate that this number may rise to as much as five million by the end of the decade, yet national targets to reduce child poverty have been abolished.

The RCPCH has found that the wide gap between the rich and poor in the UK is damaging the health of the nation’s infants, children and young people, with those from the most deprived backgrounds experiencing much worse health compared with the most affluent

The RCPCH and the Child Poverty Action Group conducted an online survey of paediatricians across the UK to capture their views on how poverty affects the physical and mental health of the children they see, and whether things are getting better or worse.


Update - September 2022 - The College has launched a child health inequalities toolkit to help paediatricians support vulnerable families and advocate for better health policies, including a position statement with recommendations to all four UK nations.