ONE fifth of children in Scotland live in families that are in poverty and cannot afford basic necessities, new figures show.
Scottish Government statistics indicate that 20 per cent of children in Scotland live in families which are both classified as having limited resources – meaning they have low incomes, defined as 70 per cent of middle income – and also live in material deprivation, so cannot afford basics such as being able to repair or replace a broken kettle.
Researchers found children in Glasgow were more likely to live in families with limited resources than the rest of Scotland, with 41 per cent of youngsters affected, while those in Moray were least likely to be in that situation, with 10 per cent affected.
The report shows children are more likely than average to live in families with limited resources if they live in a single parent household (42 per cent), have three or more siblings (39 per cent), live with a disabled adult (32 per cent) or if no or only one adult in the household is in employment (67 per cent).
Living in a rented home and in a deprived area both mean children have are more likely to be living in poverty, with 53 per cent of those in social rented accommodation and 30 per cent in private rented homes affected and 40 per cent of those in the most deprived areas.
Children are less likely than average to live in poverty if they are living with two or more adults (15 per cent), in homes where two adults are in employment (four per cent), stay in accessible rural areas (14 per cent) and live in the least deprived areas of Scotland (three per cent).
In the list of basic necessities, researchers found 34 per cent of children live in families which do not have £500 to cover an unexpected, but necessary, expense; 21 per cent do not have enough money to repair or replace broken electrical goods; 17 per cent lack the cash to take part in sports and eight per cent are too poor to live in a damp-free home.
For child necessities, researchers found 21 per cent of children did not have money to save, 20 per cent did not have a yearly holiday, five per cent could not access a computer and the internet for homework and two per cent did not have a winter coat.
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