Suffolk charity supporting families in poverty say they're struggling to help everyone
There are calls for an end to the two-child cap on benefits payments
A Suffolk charity's supporting calls for an end to the two-child cap on benefits payments.
It was called for by MPs during a debate in Westminster yesterday - and comes as figures from End Child Poverty show nearly 3000 kids in Ipswich are affected by the policy.
Across the UK 4.2 million children are living in poverty, with 300,000 children living in poverty in the East of England.
Tim Holder is the Director of Development and Communications at Suffolk Community Foundation.
He explained how poverty is impacting families:
"When parents are working hard and worrying, it affects their health and wellbeing, and that is picked up by young people and it affects them.
"They can see what's happening and the environment in which they're living in feels perhaps less safe.
"Then nutrition is potentially suffering, their ability to learn and do well at school and their own general health and wellbeing, along with their future, their ambitions and their aspirations.
"A child can be affected in so many ways.
"The economic effect is one thing and but well-being and just general quality of life can be very seriously affected.
"We see domestic abuse going up, levels of addiction going up.
"We see wellbeing going down, and many other circumstances that will potentially affect the bright future of a young person living today."
"A real challenge"
Tim went on to tell us that charities that usually help families in poverty are facing their own difficulties, thanks to the cost of living crisis:
"It is a real challenge at this point, as money dries up centrally, as people's pockets are being more hard hit and therefore, their charitable giving is potentially dropping.
"But also the cost of living is affecting charities and their ability to be able to operate because, of course, they are really businesses underneath."