Poverty: A UK crisis and how we can help.

Poverty in the UK is a real problem at the moment. During the pandemic, we currently find ourselves with the issue of many families not being able to support their children. Footballer Marcus Rashford started a movement of free school meals to help support the less advantaged families over the summer in the UK. Recently the government turned down Rashford's request for free school meals to continue until Easter 2021. Although the government has discontinued the movement they have provided an extra £16 million for local food banks.

One in five households in the UK has an income below the poverty line after housing costs are taken into account. This high number means 22% of the population do not have enough money to support themselves. This number has increased since the start of this year because of a high rise in job loss due to coronavirus. It puts millions at risk during these uncertain times. 3 million people lost their jobs during the lockdown and many more were only getting 80% of their original salaries due to furlough.

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Living in poverty is uncomfortable and dangerous. Many health conditions can develop because of it. One of those is rickets. Rickets was a very common disease in the 20th century, however, due to research and treatment they were able to sort this out. In today's society rickets is a problem. It causes bones to be very week and not adapted and develop correctly. Its very common in young children during essential stages of growth and is caused by not getting enough calcium and vitamin D. Calcium is found in almonds and vegetables and vitamin D is found in vegetables and meats. These types of foods tend to be more expensive than so-called 'junk food' such as micro-wave meals, crisps, and chocolates. As a result, essential food items like meats and fruits and seen as a luxury, that not everyone has to access to. This leads the poor to have underlying health issues when they grow up.

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Another issue is living essentials including, washing machines, heating, and electricity. as such these families can suffer from hypothermia in the most extreme cases, especially during winter months, which is very dangerous for anyone. Families living without electricity, live in a world of fear and uncertainty. This often means they find safety in the school environment. Some schools in the UK offer more than just an education for their primary school pupils. They have, 'breakfast clubs', which allow everyone at the school to start the day with a breakfast for very cheap, and sometimes free if they can not afford it. Christmas is a heart-breaking issue for poor families. An ITV documentary mentioned how one boy told his teacher that he won't be getting a Christmas as his mother is an alcoholic, his father has left the family and his grandma can't support herself when walking down the stairs.

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It's sadly not uncommon for parents in poverty to be addicts. They find comfort in the substances that they take whether that be alcohol or drugs or even cigarettes and tobacco. It acts as escapism for them which releases stress and anxiety of parenthood and the situation they find themselves in. Sadly these addictions can lead to worse things like mental health issues and sometimes even abusive behaviours. This puts the children in that household at serious risk and danger.

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So how can we help?

Food: In most supermarkets nowadays you can find boxes to donate food to food banks. Most of these look for tinned food and things that will last a long time. Anyone who needs it will then be able to collect the things they need for free. Its important to if we can buy more than we need to donate something at the end of our shop for those who need it more than us.

Clothing: We must try and donate our old clothes to charity shops and such like. Not only does it give your favourite clothing a second life for someone who needs it, but it's also good for the planet. Double win!

Charity: It doesn't take much but donating to poverty charities in the UK can help the problem.

Finally education and kindness: It's so important to educate ourselves on other people's situations so we learn not to judge and instead help them out through acts of kindness. The small unexpected acts of kindness, like helping a stranger carry their shopping to their car, (probably best not during COVID -19 times) can make their day!