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LATEST NEWS
20% of council households on more than the average
9 August 2010, This is Money
Almost a fifth of council households earn more than the national average wage - with tens of thousands taking in more than £50,000 a year.
Figures seen by the Daily Mail reveal scores of relatively well-off families living in homes intended for the most in need.
To read more please click here
The high cost of borrowing - The legacy of the credit crunch
9 August 2010, The Guardian
Young people and first-time buyers are bearing the brunt of the crunch with a much higher premium charged to those who lack large deposits for mortgages.
Figures from Countrywide, Britain's largest estate agency, reveal that the most common mortgage taken out by its customers took last month had a starting interest rate of 6.49%.
To read the full article please click here
Warning over 'critical' shortage of primary schools
8 August 2010, The Telegraph
At least 60,000 more primary school places are urgently needed to prevent an admissions crisis, according to an official report.
The equivalent of almost 250 new primaries must be built across England amid mounting pressure on schools caused by a baby boom and fewer children in independent education during the downturn, the document suggests.
To view the full story click here
Universities giving more in bursaries to poor students
4 August 2010, BBC News Education
Universities in England have slightly raised the proportion of their income they give as bursaries to poorer students, the funding watchdog says.
Last year they gave 25.8% of income from increased tuition fees, a rise of 0.8%, the Office for Fair Access said
To read the full article please click here
NEWS ARCHIVE
University system needs radical change says David Willetts
10 June 2010, BBC News
The university system is in need of "radical change" to give a better deal for taxpayers and students, England's universities minister has said.
A tuition fees review is under way, led by former BP boss Lord Browne, and is expected to report in the summer.
To read the full story click here
Fall in independent school pupils, census shows
29 April 2010, BBC News
The number of children being taught in independent schools in the UK has fallen, annual figures show. The Independent Schools Council (ISC) census showed 511,886 pupils were being privately educated, compared with 514,531 last year - a fall of 0.6%.
Considering the economic downturn, the figures were described by the private schools body as a "positive message".
UK 'has higher early death rate than many rich nations'
29 April 2010, BBC News
People in the UK have a higher risk of early death than those in many other wealthy countries, a study shows.
While deaths before the age of 60 in the UK have nearly halved in the past 40 years, the rate for women remains similar to Slovenia's and Albania's.
Experts said the large inequality gap was to blame for the findings, which were reported in the Lancet journal.
Study shows links between poverty and disability are more pronounced
19 April 2010, The Guardian
Wealthy families in Britain are a third less likely to have a disabled child – a statistic that reveals an alarming social gradient because those families unlucky enough to have such children are pushed further into poverty by the pressures of caring for them, according to new research.
In the paper, published in the journal BMC Pediatrics, researchers found that households with a disabled child were £50 a week worse off than those without. This is despite the fact that the extra costs of bringing up a disabled child means families need an extra 18% in income. Nationally, this heavy burden weighs on the 950,000 families identified in the paper as having disabled children.
New 'Cyber Mentoring' to beat online bullys
19 April 2010, The Guardian
A recent Ofsted survey found 30% of 10 to 15 year olds felt they had been bullied in the last month. In an attempt to tackle this problem a group of young people are pioneering a scheme that could change the way schools respond to bullying.
CyberMentors is a website where young people can talk to other young people about bullying. As it is an online service, victims can remain anonymous, circumventing the taboo associated with going public, while the site is staffed by young people who are trained as mentors, so victims can talk to someone their own age. As the site is run by the established anti-bullying charity Beatbullying, there are also professional counsellors ready to step in if someone's problems are too serious for school-age mentors.
Latest figures on university applications in UK show substantial increase
April 14 2010, BBC News
Figures from the Ucas admissions service show a 16.5% increase in applications for higher education courses beginning in the autumn. An earlier set of provisional figures showed a huge surge of 23%. This could still mean over 100,000 more applicants than last year chasing university places.
The final figures for applications in 2009 showed almost 640,000 total applicants - with 482,000 eventually accepted on to courses.
These latest figures for 2010 indicate an even higher level of applications - and a rising number of young people who will be turned away.
Childcare helps identify vulnerable children's needs
9 March 2010, BBC News
High-quality childcare helps identify the needs of vulnerable children early on, according to a new report. Ofsted inspectors visited 25 childminders, nurseries and day care centres in England previously judged good or outstanding for the study.
They examined how they worked with children with disabilities, speech problems and serious illnesses. The report found regular observation and ‘close collaboration with families’ contributed to high-quality care.
Carer respite funding 'spent elsewhere' say charities
8 March 2010, BBC News
Millions of pounds intended to fund respite breaks for voluntary carers in England has been spent on other areas of the NHS, according to two charities.
The government announced in 2008 that it would double money set aside to allow long-term carers some time off - £50 million this year and £100 million next year. However, Crossroads Care and Princess Royal Trust for Carers say only 23% of this year's cash is being spent on carers.
Music star Tinchy Stryder offers kids money tips
5 March 2010, BBC News
Urban music star Tinchy Stryder has drawn on his own experience to advise youngsters to invest money wisely. The artist, who is 22, funded his first album partly from selling clothes and visited a school in London to encourage others to manage their money safely.
His appearance was part of a publicity drive for education materials for teaching personal finance, partly funded by the government.
Marmot Review: Minimum wage 'too low for healthy living'
11 February 2010, BBC News
Inequality between the rich and poor in Britain is still a huge social and economic problem, a review of health inequalities in England has found. The report says that there are still huge differences in life expectancy based on income and calls for a "minimum income for healthy living".
Correspondent Andrew Hosken spoke to Sonia May, a mother of two with an income of £100 a week, about how she copes with the financial demands of her family, and Professor Sir Michael Marmot, author of the report, explains its findings and recommendations.
Click here to hear an interview with Professor Sir Michael Marmot on BBC Radio 4
Over-55s entering retirement 'saddled with debt'
10 February 2010, The Guardian
Two-fifths of people approaching retirement are failing to save anything to help support themselves when they leave work, research showed today, with many of these "pre-retirees" having a substantial amount of debt.
The report paints a picture of a divided Britain with a growing gap between the super rich and the very poor, with more than one in five people struggling to survive on less than £750 a month and an increasing number entering retirement saddled with debts.
University budget cuts revealed
1 February 2010, BBC News
England's university budgets are being cut by £449m, leading student places to be reduced by an estimated 6,000 in the next academic year.
"In spite of protestations to the contrary, the cuts being imposed by the government are going to hit teaching, research and the number of places available at a time of record demand," said Mr Streeting.
Freshers fear a lifetime of debt mountain - 28 September 2009
The Independent
One in four students thinks it will take them up to 20 years to clear the debts they have accrued while at university, according to a survey published today.
The smart money guide to university - 19 September 2009
The Guardian
Tips on saving money while you're at college.
Read more here.
Debt Advice Foundation launches recession helpline - 11 August 2009
Third Sector Magazine
The Debt Advice Foundation has launched a new helpline for people who have been affected by the recession after reports showed existing charity services were struggling to cope with a rise in demand.
The new telephone helpline number is 0800 292 2077.
Pensioner poverty 'unacceptable' - 29 July 2009
BBC News
It is "unacceptable" that two million pensioners in the UK are still living in poverty, a group of MPs says.
Student grants frozen as tuition fees rise - 1 July 2009
1 July 2009, The Guardian
The government is freezing all student grants and loans and cutting financial support for trainee teachers as a result of the recession, it announced today.
Pensioners' pride blamed for record in unclaimed benefits - 26 June 2009
The Daily Telegraph
Pensioners' pride has been blamed as the number of unclaimed benefits for the elderly hits a record £5.4 billion.
Over one in five children in Scotland lives in poverty - 29 May 2009
The Joseph Rowntree Foundation
Approximately 21% of children in Scotland are living in poverty, according to a report released today by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. Despite earlier progress over the last decade in reducing child poverty – reductions were greater in Scotland than in other UK regions – levels have stalled since 2004/05 and are now fairly similar to the rest of the UK.
No progress on child poverty, new figures show - 7 May 2009
The Guardian
Ministers admit their target of halving child poverty by 2010 now looks 'very difficult'.
Homeowners Mortgage Support - 29 April 2009
Communities and Local Government
On 21 April 2009, the Prime Minister announced that Homeowners Mortgage Support is now available to help homeowners who suffer a temporary income shock. It means that eligible homeowners will be able to make smaller mortgage repayments for up to two years, without the risk of losing their homes.
'Existing' on the poverty line - 8 April 2009
BBC News
Oxfam is warning that the economic downturn is creating more poverty in the UK, making life tougher for the fifth of the population already struggling to get by.
Save the Children declares a ‘crisis for children’ in the UK - 6 April 2009
Save the Children has declared a 'crisis' for families in the UK, as it partners with UK charity Family Action to distribute cash grants to around a thousand families who are struggling in the recession.
Budget: VAT rise will add £33 to average shopping basket
22 June 2010, The Guardian
Canny shoppers are being urged to adopt some clever tricks to help them deflect the 2.5% rise in VAT to 20% next January. The rise will add at least £33 a year to the average shopper's supermarket basket, it was predicted today, as consumer groups warned that the rise will have a disproportionate effect hitting poorest families the hardest.
Healthy meals beyond reach of poor, says Ofsted
25 June 2010, The Guardian
Parents on low incomes are struggling to pay for healthy school meals for their children, the schools watchdog warns today. Critics of the government's decision to scrap a planned extension of free school meals called on the education secretary, Michael Gove, to change his mind, after Ofsted found that in some families money was so tight that siblings had to take it it turns to have nutritious lunches for a week.
Review to look at fairness of incapacity benefit tests
30 June 2010, The Guardian
The government yesterday announced an independent review of the methods used to assess the work fitness of those claiming incapacity-related benefits. Disability charities say the current tests are too inflexible – failing to take into account the variation in long-term conditions. The government will start reassessing 1,700 claimants in Burnley and Aberdeen from October 2010, and then start – as Labour planned – a national process from February next year.
