In a pre-election report from the Child Poverty and Social Mobility Commission, former Labour MP Alan Milburn warns that the ‘credit crunch generation’ - those born after 2008 - could be the first in nearly 50 years to see their prospects go backwards.
While there is cross-party consensus on the need to tackle the issue and child poverty levels have fallen, change has still been limited and too slow, the report said.
The report calls on all political parties to set out their plans on dealing with mobility and child poverty, or risk Britain becoming a permanently divided nation.
It also maps the geographical variations in social mobility across the country, based on a social mobility index.
It highlights social mobility ‘cold spots’ in the East of England in Peterbrough and Norwich, and an on the south coast, such as Portsmouth and Folkestone, where despite high employment, many people are working in low skilled jobs and leave school with fewer qualifications.
London, meanwhile, is a social mobility hotspot because high educational attainment levels and a buoyant labour market have offset high rates of child poverty.
‘There is a real risk that the enormous fiscal challenges facing the next government will persuade whoever is in 10 Downing Street after May to consign progress on mobility and poverty to the “too difficult” pile. We believe that this would be a mistake of catastrophic proportions,’ the report said.
In a joint statement Mr Milburn and Baroness Gillian Shephard, chair and deputy chair of the Commission, said, ‘British politicians have agreed for decades that boosting social mobility and reducing child poverty are essential. Counter to today’s prevailing anti-politics mood, that this consensus has produced real results on some of the most intractable social problems of our age, is testament to the ability of our political system to deliver.
'Nonetheless, it is obvious that the progress made so far has been too limited and too slow. This is not a criticism of what current or previous Governments have done, but instead an exhortation to all the political parties to continue to bend to the wheel. Urgent action and renewed energy is needed now if the challenges of the fiscal deficit and deep-seated changes in the labour and housing markets are not to result in Britain becoming a permanently divided nation.’
4Children’s director of Public Affairs, Helen Berresford, said, ‘For too long the life chances and horizons of children and families have been limited by where they are from. This report shows that people in parts of this country have been neglected - to their detriment and to the detriment of our wider society and economy.
‘As the report makes clear, work used to be a ticket out of poverty – now the line between the two is blurred and families are suffering as result. Investing in the skills and talents of families right across the country and releasing their potential makes economic sense.
‘This report highlights the real challenge in supporting women into work and making work pay when they’re there. Politicians need to prioritise accessible, affordable and quality childcare so that this generation and the next can thrive.’
