The profile and depth of poverty in the UK has changed considerably over recent years. Household incomes have grown slowly and unequally, and income inequality in the UK is rising and is now higher than other European countries. The benefit cap and two-child limit are pushing more families into poverty; cuts to social security are leading to real hardship for millions. Poverty undermines opportunity by holding back cognitive development and educational attainment, damaging people’s health and reducing their life expectancy. Poverty constricts people’s choices and their thinking, making it harder to identify opportunities and to work towards realising them.
