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c/o Council for Disabled Children
National Children's Bureau
8 Wakley Street
London EC1V 7QE
tel +44 (0)20 7843 6448
fax +44 (0)20 7843 6313
[email protected]
Disabled children and child poverty - new campaign briefing
EDCM is calling today for specific action by government to end child poverty for families with disabled children.
Disabled children and child poverty, the new EDCM briefing, highlights the additional costs and income penalty facing families with disabled children.
EDCM wants all our supporters to take part in the Campaign to End Child Poverty by emailing the Prime Minister - and including our demand for a DLA take-up campaign.
It costs three times as much to bring up a disabled child compared with other children, and childcare costs for disabled children are up to five times as much. Families with disabled children are both 50 per cent more likely to be in debt than other families, and 50 percent less likely to be able to afford essentials like new clothes or school outings.
To address this, EDCM is calling for:
* A major take-up campaign on Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
* An increase in the childcare element of working tax credit to £300 per week
* An increase in DLA to meet the real cost of caring for a disabled child
Steve Broach, EDCM Campaign Manager, comments:
'It is scandalous that in 2007, families with disabled children are forced to choose between going into debt or going without. We want government to prove that disabled children are at the heart of the efforts to end child poverty by committing to a major take-up campaign on DLA.'
More from EDCM
Download the Disabled children and child poverty briefing
News story: Lib Dems announce plans on poverty and inequality
News story: Better off - in work?
News archive on child poverty
