ATSS Ltd. PO Box 6079 Leicester LE2 4WB
Presentation 1
Poverty and Social Exclusion in Britain
by David Gordon et. al. (2000)
www.atss.org.uk
About the study
• A large research team was gathered
from leading universities and the Office
for National Statistics.
• The study was conducted in 1999
• The report was published by the Joseph
Rowntree Foundation in 2000.
• It measures poverty in terms of
deprivation and social exclusion.
Main findings: General points
• The Labour Government has made the
eradication of child poverty one of its
targets.
• There has been little general research
on poverty and social exclusion
conducted by government bodies since
the 1970s.
Poverty rates
• At the end of 1999, 14.5 million people
were living in poverty in Britain.
• Poverty rates have risen sharply so that
between 1983 and 1999 there was a
rise from 14% to 21% of the population
in poverty.
• 24% of households are poor.
Poverty: conditions of poverty
• Approximately 9.5 million people cannot
afford adequate housing as measured
by the majority of people.
• They experience poor physical
conditions such as damp, poor levels of
heat and inadequate furnishing and
decoration.
Poverty: Household goods
• Approximately 8 million people are
without essential household items such
as fridges, telephones, carpets.
• These people cannot afford to repair or
replace items as they wear out.
• Some of these people did not consider
themselves poor because they had low
expectations of what is needed for life.
Poverty: Social Activities
• Almost 7.5 million people cannot afford
common social activities such as visiting
friends and family.
• They do not attend weddings and
funerals and avoid special celebrations
such as anniversaries and parties.
Poverty: Clothing
• Approximately 6.5 million adults are without
warm waterproof coats.
• They make do with less clothing than they
require for comfort.
• The reason for this is that they lack money for
essentials.
• Young people are more willing and happy to
do without essential clothing than older
people.
Poverty: Nutrition
• Nutrition is poor for some 4,000,000
people.
• They are too poor to afford good, fresh
vegetables and fruit.
• They are only able to afford one meal a
day.
• Many children do not have meat, fish or
vegetarian protein once a day.
Poverty: Financial security
• People tend to drift in and out of poverty as
their work, family or health status changes.
• 10.5 million people do not save, spend
money on insurance or even spend small
amounts of cash on themselves for luxuries.
• These people are unlikely or unable to pay
into private pension schemes.
Poverty: Who is poor?
• women • households where there
• children is unemployment
• adults living alone • households with no paid
• large families worker
• families with younger • separated and divorced
children families
• young people • lone parents
• those who left school • tenants
under 16 years • benefit dependents
Absolute and Relative Poverty
• The amount needed to escape absolute
poverty in the UK in 1999 was an average
income of £178 a week.
• The amount need to escape relative poverty
in the UK in 1999 was £239 on average.
• 19% of single pensioners, 40% of lone
parents and 18% of couples with one child
say they experience absolute poverty.
Social Exclusion
• 43% of adults have no paid work
• Over 1 in 3 people live in a household where
no-one works.
• Non-work can refer to joblessness (domestic
labour through choice, for instance) or
unemployment, but it also refers to
retirement.
• These people are at risk of exclusion from
services and social life.
Exclusion from services
• More than I in 20 people have
experienced disconnection from basic
services such as gas, water, electricity
or phones.
• 1 in 10 practise economies and try not
to use these services because of the
cost.
Social Relationships
• Many people are unable to participate in
a full social life because of cost.
• They do not buy presents, cards or
attend celebrations because they
cannot afford to do this.
• They are at serious risk of isolation.
• Unmarried men carry very high risks of
social isolation.
Disability and Caring
• Carers are at risk of social isolation
because of their duties. This risk applies
to those who care for young children.
• The disabled are at risk of social
isolation due to lack of facilities,
services or financial support.
Friendships
• Many people do not have a friend
outside their immediate family circle.
• This means that they do not have social
support in times of need.
• This can apply to those in work who do
not have time to devote to social
activities as well as those who cannot
afford social activities.
Poverty and Inequality
• Lack of paid work can cause poverty so that
the sick, carers, long term unemployed and
welfare dependent people experience social
exclusion.
• Low paid work can contribute to poverty and
social exclusion.
• Lack of support services for people who
experience problems can also cause social
exclusion.
Poverty and Inequality
• There is a serious divergence between
those who have some wealth and those
who have no wealth.
• The gap is widening in modern society.
• Poverty and inequality affect the
population adversely; they contribute to
health, welfare, education and skills
deficits among the poorest people.
A fuller review of this research is available in Sociology
since 1990 by Jonathan Blundell and Janis Griffiths.
Available from Connect Publications, Cooksbridge
House,
Cooksbridge,
Lewes BN8 4SR.
Tel: 01273 01714
e mail: connect.pub@mistral.co.uk
The end
This slideshow summary of Gordon et al (2000) Poverty and Social
Exclusion in Britain was created for the ATSS without reference to
the original authors of the work. Errors of understanding or detail are
therefore our own.
For further details of the research you should contact the publishers,
Joseph Rowntree Foundation www.jrf.org.uk where you can obtain
copies of the full report.