ABSTRACT
This chapter demonstrates that raising the educational achievement of children from low-income families has been a concern for successive governments in Britain for many years. A lack of understanding of the link between poverty and educational achievement perpetuates the chasms of difference that exist between children in disadvantage and their more affluent peers. The government’s target to end child poverty by 2020 has not been reached, and another one million children are pushed into poverty. This chapter discusses the effects of poverty on children’s academic achievement and life chances. It acknowledges that no “quick fix” is possible but is optimistic that through organisations working together to respond to local issues, with local communities and with families in a joined-up approach, we will have both the opportunity and the drive to break the link between poverty and under attainment and improve life chances for all young people.
