More than one in three children across Wales live below the poverty line—that's 10 children out of a class of 30—and in some areas, the rate is even higher, and unfortunately, the situation will only deteriorate further as the cost-of-living crisis continues to affect increasing numbers of people. Wales has a higher child poverty rate than other UK nations, and although the Minister is right to say in the child poverty progress report that a number of the main levers to tackle poverty, such as powers over the taxation and welfare systems, are the responsibility of the UK Government, this does not mean that the finger can be pointed solely at the UK Government when it comes to  the lack of here progress in Wales. Even in the more affluent local authorities, at least a quarter of children are currently living below the poverty line. It's a serious problem in all parts of Wales.

The Welsh Government’s own statistics, published earlier this year, indicated that between 2016 and 2019 a child in Wales had a 13 per cent likelihood of being in persistent poverty. Furthermore, 31 per cent of children were living in relative income poverty in the 2017 to 2020 period. This figure had increased from the 28 per cent previously reported, and represents the highest percentage figure for all of the UK nations.

Poverty affects every aspect of a child’s life. At school, it can lock children out of opportunities to participate, to learn and to thrive. In every school in Wales, an increasing number of families are struggling to afford the basics. Poverty rates have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic and now, with the subsequent cost-of-living crisis, many more families need support. Eighty-eight per cent of NEU Cymru members say that the child poverty experienced by their learners has deteriorated since the start of 2020, and a survey undertaken by them showed the dire effects of poverty on students: 92 per cent of learners showed signs of tiredness; 86 per cent struggled to concentrate; 71 per cent showed signs of hunger during the school day; 31 per cent showed signs of ill health; and 23 per cent experienced bullying because their family is in poverty. That's happening in Wales in 2022. Every child deserves equitable access to education, but schools alone cannot provide all of the support that these learners need.

As we've discussed several times in this Siambr, the cost of the school day causes many issues for learners from low-income families. Families are regularly asked to contribute towards the cost of school uniform, trips, charity fundraising, school meals and snacks, and to provide equipment and resources for particular projects. And although support is available, it doesn’t go far enough, meaning that schools either cannot do some things that would enrich the lives of their pupils, because their own budgets are under pressure, or those learners who cannot afford to participate lose out.

There are heartbreaking stories across Wales of children not showing their parents letters from school because they don’t want to cause them extra stress—they don't even talk about a trip. I visited a school in my region recently, and the school parliament told me that they'd decided that they wouldn't undertake many of the activities that they would usually undertake because they knew that that would cause stress for parents. These are primary school children deciding not to put their parents under stress because of the cost-of-living crisis.

Research shows that children and young people from less affluent homes are more likely to report higher levels of loneliness, are less satisfied with their lives, and are less likely to enjoy going to school. It is a cause of great concern that the social exclusion felt by low-income learners is frequently heightened by other forms of inequality, with lower income children from Gypsy, Roma, Traveller and black communities more likely to report that they are lonely and unhappy at school, compared to white Welsh and white British children of a similar socioeconomic status.

Child poverty also leaves clear gaps in educational attainment, something that I discussed with pupils from Llanishen High School when they visited the Senedd yesterday. I heard from them, and their teacher, that the cost of transport is a barrier to some pupils attending school, and that this affects the attainment of the most vulnerable pupils. I have raised this issue several times over the past few months, but the problem persists and is, indeed, getting worse.

It is clear that what we are currently doing isn’t working and isn’t going far enough. Not only do we need a strategy, but we need defined targets that will be closely and consistently monitored if we are to tackle this problem. A commitment was made in the past to eradicate child poverty by 2020. In 2022, the situation is worse than ever before. Every child and young person deserves better.