United Kingdoms Social Policy with Reference to Child Poverty under Term Paper

United Kingdoms Social Policy with Reference to Child Poverty under the New Labour Government - Term Paper Example One of the roles of the government is the formation of a legal framework and approach towards various activities that affect the living conditions of its citizens. The formation and application of these legal frameworks present various challenges while at the same time managing to improve the affected person’s standard of living. The concept under which a government seeks to improve the welfare of its citizens by the formation and implementation of various legislations and guidelines is referred to as a social policy. To illustrate the concept in detail, this essay will focus on the United Kingdoms’ social policy with reference to child poverty under the New Labour government. The gaps existing in policy development will also be given. The evaluation will be guided by information sourced from various written policy documents and statements from key politicians regarding child poverty (Davies 2008). Child poverty can be defined as a situation where a household lacks adequate resources to live above a generally agreed lifestyle. The British government approached child poverty from four aspects which are enshrined under the 2010 Child Poverty Act (Preston 2008). Under the Act, child poverty is defined from four perspectives, namely: relative low-income poverty, absolute low-income poverty, persistent low-income poverty and finally material deprivation. Under the relative low-income poverty, a child is deemed poor if their family’s income is below 60% of the median income. Absolute low-income poverty arises where a child’s family constantly holds an income of less than 60% of the median income for one fiscal year. The Act identifies persistent low-income poverty as one where a child’s household lives on an income of less than 60% of the median household income for a period exceeding 3 years.