Poor families in Glasgow are falling short of £117 per week needed to stay above the poverty line as the council carries out “innovative work” to help people on low incomes.
The financial situation is worsening as families in poverty were £107 below the threshold in 2020, a city report on poverty shows.
After housing costs, over a third of children in the city – 36% – were in relative poverty in 2023 to 2024 according to End Child Poverty, which is a high since the pandemic.
But DWP estimates 26% of children were experiencing relative poverty during that time – which is equivalent to 25,690 kids.
Councillors were presented with the latest Glasgow Local Child Poverty Action Report for 2024 to 2025 showing the work taking place to help families struggling to make ends meet.
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Presenting the report, city treasurer Ricky Bell said “innovative work” is taking place in the to tackle poverty.
He said: “We find ourselves quite a worn carpet at the front door with visitiors coming to see what Glasgow is doing in terms of our child poverty strategy.
“We are not the only city but we are certainly the city that is furthest ahead in being able to move people through the whole process of getting them back out of poverty.”
Speaking at last week’s city administration committee, the SNP councillor added: “Poverty is not a straightforward thing. I have said many times I think poverty is a deliberate thing. I think poverty is a deliberate outcome from government policies but we won’t stray too far into that discussion.”
He said: “The report highlights that families are now benefiting from more joined up relational and preventative support through initiatives such as Glasgow Helps and the No Wrong Door Network which now includes more than 250 partners across public third and community sectors.”
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The city’s most deprived council wards, including Southside Central, Calton and Govan – known as booster wards – are being targeted with schemes to help reduce poverty. One example sees parents being offered paid work placements.
Work taking places includes after school care in Calton to help boost family income and trauma workshops in Greater Pollok.
Other efforts throughout the city sees financial inclusion support officers giving out advice in schools.
And the Glasgow Helps services assists people with finding the right support.
The Child Poverty (Scotland) Act 2017 has set targets for 2030 that less than 10% of children are in relative poverty, under 5% of children are in absolute poverty and fewer than 5% are in persistent poverty.
