Interesting new report from @ipprscotland.bsky.social Focused on Scotland but relevant across the UK in making the case for social security investment. 1. High social spending is compatible with economic success. Evidence shows European countries with high levels...1/4 www.ippr.org/articles/mor...

Essential reading

The amendment reflected a key recommendation of the Covid-19 Inquiry: put children’s rights at the heart of decision-making. Statutory CRIAs = children’s voices heard, better policy, stronger accountability, especially for the most marginalised.

We asked claimants what was the biggest problem with UC, and one issue came up more than any other ⤵️

Good to see mainstream coverage of “deplaytion” - the loss and decline of neighbourhood playgrounds, and of a tolerance of children’s neighbourhood play. It’s critical that this issue is taken as seriously - in terms of children’s mental health - as social media. Thanks @anooshc.bsky.social.

🚨 New report! 🚨 The Government must increase trust in Universal Credit as full roll out brings 15 million people into the system. Listen and learn, produced in partnership with @changingrealities.bsky.social, draws on testimony from UC claimants and welfare advisors ⤵️ buff.ly/TjrE4OW

Two pieces of advice for people worried about SEND reforms, from the successful campaign to scrap the 2 child limit: 1/ Ignore every single media story with unnamed "sources" 2/ You can trust that the decision-makers at the Department for Education genuinely have children's best interests at heart

This is such a good example of how to apply systems thinking to solve public policy challenges in new ways, both innovative and clearly written

An astonishingly moving post by @ariellegarton.bsky.social marking Holocaust Memorial Day #HMD #HMD2026 #HolocaustMemorialDay #BridgingGenerations

The data shows us that children suffer the highest rates of poverty within the different sections of the population. 📈 At the time the Labour government came to power, there were 4.5 million children in poverty, up 600,000 on pre-pandemic levels. This is a damning statistic.

Most households currently subject to the two-child limit have at least one adult in work. Of the minority of households not in work, more than nine-in-ten have a child under three or a disabled family member with additional care needs, making any return to the labour market challenging.

It’s Penguin Awareness Day which seems like a great excuse to post the greatest ever Wikipedia edit.

Great organisation - if you are looking for a trustee opportunity then do have a look at this one

Great piece. I worked on Big Local and would add that another lesson is about how long term, large scale expendable endowments of grant funding are a very effective way of funding this kind of work and we should do more of this.

Gift link - we all need to read this. Shoot this Resistance into my veins! After 48 hours of torture, Dr. Christie wrote a forced confession — “the best thing I ever wrote,” he later told the BBC www.nytimes.com/2026/01/14/w...

🔎 Want to hear more from our experts? Interested in research at the forefront of the policy discussion on how to reduce poverty in the UK? Then our starter pack is for you! Give our colleagues a follow so you can be kept up-to-date on all of our latest work and analysis. go.bsky.app/PLDMAUz

Such great news that the Scottish Child Payment for families with babies will go up to £40/week from 2027. Analysis below from our fab team in Scotland 👇

"As a mother, my heart swelled with pride. But as an advocate, I felt something even deeper: a reassuring reminder that this country still has space for compassion..." Why we [continue to] do this work, a blog by Beauty reflecting on a visit to No.10: www.changingrealities.org/blog/hope-at...

A Dutch worker went viral after explaining to their American boss that they have a life outside work.

Tax and benefit measures announced this Parliament so far benefit children the most. This is due to the abolition of the two-child limit, the expansion of Free School Meals to children in families receiving UC in England, and the above-inflation increases to the UC standard allowance.

Teachers back scrapping the two child limit and believe it will help children's education inews.co.uk/news/politic...

"The latest data shows that since the launch in summer 2024 more than 1,000 people have signed up with one of the JobsPlus teams, with more than 270 finding work." Fantastic to have Heather Stewart @theguardian.com visit our #JobsPlus site in Stockton and read her excellent write-up from the day. ⤵️

Unconditional cash transfers for the poorest are a very good thing. End of.

Another excellent contribution from @louisehaighmp.bsky.social 👇

“In the face of rising authoritarianism, creativity is an enduring movement superpower that helped us break through the stranglehold of fear this year.” And more to come in the new year!

I have known DAME Anneliese Dodds for more than 25 years. No-one works harder or cares more. So pleased to see this recognition of years of public service

What do you think our economy could do with an extra £1.6bn? Let's make 2026 the year we finally #LiftTheBan and let people work - for people seeking safety, for the communities that could benefit from their skills, and for our economy.

This is also why "involving children in creating new institutions and renewing systems" is ultimately better than "defend the existing status quo which was developed decades ago" - even when we like the existing institutions and systems and they do good things

I've been aware for a while of the work by faith and other community groups to support people seeking asylum. So I asked the @refugeecouncil.bsky.social where there was really vigorous community support. They said Northallerton. Here's what I found when I went there: as.ft.com/r/b3449fbd-3...

The older I get, the more my politics mature from childish, naïve beliefs like "the world is complicated and leaders have to make hard decisions" to more serious, adult principles like "hurting people is bad and helping people is good."

Whether it’s @savethechildren.org or @unicef.org or many other charities working on the ground in Ukraine, Sudan, Gaza and across the world - their work must be supported and the work to secure peace must continue.

Here's my review of 2025. It's a story of how collective action helped lift over half a million kids out of poverty, and how even in the toughest of times a better future is possible. medium.com/@DanPaskins/...

In what is possibly the least surprising news ever….

Tabloids labelled the end of the two-child limit on benefits the 'opening of benefits street'. Joseph Howes explains why this is so dangerous.

Stacey from @changingrealities.bsky.social has written such an honest blog about why, even with awful trolling, she won’t stop speaking up for people living in poverty www.changingrealities.org/blog/why-i-w...

Just 1 day to go until Christmas Jumper Day & Christine Lampard has a message for everyone here who's getting ready to take part and raise money to support children around the world!🎄🎅🌟

The Government's Child Poverty Strategy begins to turn the tide on child poverty. As a result, child poverty rates will fall next year – the first time in nine years (outside the pandemic). But other child poverty headwinds remain. Read our full statement 👇 buff.ly/Tnqasir

The UK, where the day after a decision to take half a million children out of poverty, the media & political world has been full of sneering at those same children & their families, labelling them as ‘Benefits Street’, while the same people are moaning about a tax on £2m mansions. Shameful stuff.

Literally every expert in how to help children: pls get rid of 2 child limit, here is the evidence about why this would help children Government: ok we will get rid of 2 child limit and help children Journalists: why is the government putting party before country

70% of the additional spending from removing the two-child limit will go to families who are in work. This is targeting support for low-income working households who are being priced out of a decent standard of living despite doing everything asked of them.

📣New @jrf-uk.bsky.social analysis Scrapping the 2 child limit alone has reversed the projected decline in living standards by *more than half* for the bottom third of households 1/2

This by @liamthorp.bsky.social is excellent

The Chancellor made a bold claim today that this parliament will see the biggest reduction in child poverty since records began. If the Budget doc projection of child poverty falling by 400,000 is right, so is the claim. Removing the two child limit is pivotal to this reduction.

This is such important news. Hundreds of thousands of children taken out of poverty with the stroke of a pen.

The Chancellor has scrapped the two-child limit, benefitting more than half a million families. In April 2025, out of families impacted by the limit: - 6 in 10 had 3 children. - 6 in 10 had at least one person in work. - And 6 in 10 are receiving a health or disability benefit.

Whatever else this government do (and there's plenty of issues with this budget) ministers will always be able to point to this as an incredible important contribution to the country's future. Almost half a million kids taken out of poverty.

We welcome this bold action by the Chancellor to scrap the two-child limit. By the end of this Parliament, 450,000 children across the country will have been lifted out of poverty. Scrapping this unjust policy is the single most powerful step to reduce child poverty in a generation. 1/3

That’s how much the Government spends on welfare, but what do people receive in return? Here we can see a generational shift in the generosity of support over the past two decades. Since 2010, changes to benefits have largely favoured older age groups, while families with children have lost out.

Budget day is here. For all the reasons in this thread & for hundreds more, let’s hope @teamlabouruk.bsky.social does the right thing and gets rid of the two-child limit, a callous policy that has no place in a compassionate country largerfamilies.study

Why the two-child limit has to go, in a chart.