Continued Cost of Living Support for Parents
More than 292,000 baby boxes have been delivered to expectant parents since the launch of the scheme in 2017 – providing them with around £420 worth of essential items for their newborn.
Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville said Baby Boxes give families reassurance that, regardless of their circumstances, they will have access to essential items needed for the first six months of their newborn’s life.
Ms Somerville also reiterated calls for the UK Government to announce more funding to help families struggling with the cost of living when it publishes its Spring Budget.
Modelling estimates that Scottish Government policies will keep 100,000 children out of relative poverty and 70,000 children out of absolute poverty in 2024-25, with the respective child poverty rates 10 percentage points and 7 percentage points lower than they would have been without these policies.
If the UK Government were to remove the two-child limit and reinstate the family element in Universal Credit, it is estimated this would lead to a further 10,000 fewer children in Scotland living in relative and absolute poverty in 2024-25, while introducing an Essentials Guarantee would lead to a further 30,000 fewer children living in relative and absolute poverty.
I very much welcome these latest figures on the number benefitting from the SNP Scottish Government’s Baby Box initiative.
GRAEME
This is one truly rooted in Scotland’s egalitarian values, and one which has since been copied by other countries based on our example.
As families continue to struggle through the Tory cost of living crisis, the £420 value of the items in the box will be very significant for many new parents.
Through its many unique devolved social security initiatives, this Scottish Government is determined to tackle child poverty and ensure every child has the best possible start in life.
The Baby Box is a welcome gift for every baby born in Scotland. It ensures that every family with a new-born has access to essential items needed in the first six months of a child’s life, like clothes, books and thermometers – saving expectant parents around £420.
SOCIAL JUSTICE SECRETARY SHIRLEY-ANNE SOMERVILLE
We want to ensure every child has the nurturing care they need to have the best start in life and to fulfil their potential. Supporting parents is key to improving outcomes for children and young people.
As a result of the Scottish Government’s policies such as the Scottish Child Payment, it is estimated that 100,000 fewer children will live in relative poverty in 2024-25. But we will always be fighting poverty with one arm tied behind our back if the UK Government is delivering policies that result in the opposite outcome.
The Spring Budget should be an opportunity for the UK Government to take action needed to transform the lives and outcomes of people across the UK, including introducing an Essentials Guarantee to ensure social security benefits adequately cover the cost of essentials.
Background
APS Group (Scotland), which has the managing agent contract for Scotland’s Baby Box, conducted a cost analysis which determined that if parents were to buy the box and all the contents individually, the cost would be approximately £429.
