Growing up in families with low income

Norway is a strong welfare state providing for its inhabitants through a broad, thorough net of social and economics services, either in the form of pecuniary social benefits or organizational services such as free primary and secondary public schooling. Yet some groups in Norwegian society are far less supported by the welfare state than one could expect, such as children growing up in families with low income. An analysis of four major types of social policies, which either directly or indirectly target children growing up families with low income, questions the adequacy of these social policies. It is argued that the legal duty of the Norwegian state to implement the child’s right to an adequate standard of living and the right to substantive equality and non-discrimination requires a human rights–based approach when developing and deciding on social policies. The legal duty of implementing human rights offers a tool to develop social policies that put children growing up in low-income families at the centre of social policy. In conclusion, social and economic policies are not just politics. Social policies must be in line with and implement international social and economic human rights, and only then will policies be adequate.