Head of UK Impact Communications for @savechildrenuk & spox on child poverty.
Former pol ed @politicshome, pol corr @guardian @EveningStandard @yorkshirepost.
Tragically we say it again - no child should be exploited through fear and hate for violent ends. No community should have to cower in fear of violence.
🔴 Rachel Reeves hailed the Government’s abolition of the two-child benefit cap as a “moral” choice
Follow the latest from her Spring Statement ⬇️
https://t.co/q5v7bYknqb
Are you or anyone you know affected by the two-child limit? The government has announced it will be lifted in April, and we want to hear from affected families.
Please share: https://t.co/dwT39hLqeo
"Some say the Treasury can’t afford the cost of scrapping the two-child limit to benefits. In reality, we can’t afford not to support these children, or to address the cost of child poverty to the economy at £39 billion a year.
No child should ever be penalised or used as a political football due to the circumstances of their birth. Scrapping the two-child limit to benefits is the correct economic and moral choice."
Our brilliant colleague Meghan writing in the @DailyMirror 👏
'I couldn't work after taking in my 2-year-old nephew - we rely on benefits to live'
Sarah Chapman tells @theipaper how she lost her career and was plunged into benefits
Kinship carers don't receive paid leave despite saving children from going into care
https://t.co/Lk0QbSW5rZ
Teenagers, smart phones and social media....
You know me best as Sky News's political editor, but I am also a mum to two teenagers aged 13 and 16.
They were babies born into the age of the iPad, the smartphone and social media and have grown up in what I call the digital Wild West.
From the iPads when they were younger, to the smartphones at secondary school, raising children against the backdrop of the explosion of social media, gaming platforms, and artificial intelligence has been like trying to navigate a new frontier without a playbook.
It has been a constant battle to balance the benefits of using technology - be it creative play on Minecraft or Roblox - while trying to keep them safe in these spaces where chatrooms are rife and protect their growing minds.
I have had countless conversations with friends as we fret about the possible erosion of our kids' attention spans or obsession with screens.
As my kids have got older, online platforms have given them a space to socialise with friends while gaming, or revise in groups online.
But I've also been confronted with the challenge of attempting to limit screen time and restrict - or ban - the use of social media, be it Snapchat, TikTok or Instagram. It's made all the harder when all their peers are using these apps to communicate and socialise.
There is an almost intoxicating draw for this stuff for teens who naturally want to break boundaries, are led by their peers and want to impress. Social media impacts them and their relationships at a critical period of both exploration and vulnerability.
Research shows social media drives poor body image in girls and can lead to self-harm. Boys can find themselves exposed to toxic masculinity and misogyny.
The TV series Adolescence became a global conversation because it captured a zeitgeist global in its reach - how our children are growing up in the digital age, and how as parents can we protect them.
So when I say my experience of raising children in the age of social media and smartphones has been anxiety-inducing, time-consuming and, at times, conflict-inducing, I think many of you reading this might feel the same.
Like the Wild West frontier of the 19th century, this technological frontier of the 21st century is rapidly expanding, lawless, and lacking in institutional regulation.
It is populated by some good actors and many bad ones. That's why I can completely sympathise with the parents now screaming to the politicians that they want to turn it off and stop under-16s using social media.
But will it actually work? We've spent some time with teenagers, campaigners and @leicesterliz asking the Q
Read the full piece here https://t.co/o7WMbxDeLv
EXC: Almost 4 out of 5 (78%) people support the UK Government's aim to cut child poverty, according to new polling from Save the Children and @YouGov.
It couldn't be clearer - the general public wants child poverty to come down. The most cost effective way to do this is by scrapping the two-child limit to benefits.
The Bill going through Parliament today is the final step on the journey to reducing record-high child poverty rates.
Change cannot come soon enough for these children.
Today’s @YorkshirePost features a column written by @_HENorth Exec Director @HannahDaviesHEN, who sets out why it’s imperative to scrap the two-child benefit cap if we want to see a reduction in the unacceptable child poverty rates.
https://t.co/KBVbvAzHdB
Our thoughts are with all of those injured in this morning's attack outside Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation Synagogue.
Hate and division have no place in our society. We should all recognise - as Jo did - that we have more in common than that which divides us.
I love chairing this event. Thanks for having me for another year and to Phillip and Hope from the Liverpool University Young Persons Advisory Group for their excellent questions.
Huge thanks to all who joined us at Labour Conference in Liverpool yesterday for Save the Children's reception.
We were delighted to hear from Secretary of State @bphillipsonMP who shared her commitment to reducing child poverty in the UK; @JeevunSandher spoke about how we must do better for children around the world; Sarah Owen MP reminded us that children's suffering in the Middle East and elsewhere should not be normalised; and @antoniabance gave powerful testimony about the profound impact poverty had on families in her constituency and beyond.
They and all our guests are united in a belief that real change is possible. We look forward to continuing to collaborate so that children everywhere can have better, happier and healthier childhoods.
Isabel Hardman signs off today after 13 years (!) writing The Spectator's Evening Blend.
Here's my tribute to one of the best and most inspiring journalists I've ever worked with: https://t.co/KVvI6m7QjI
I asked PM for his vision of foreign aid. @savechildrenuk & @CGDev predict budget reductions will lead to 62 million fewer people supported in education, heath, SRHR, water & nutrition. What will UK aid stand for? @UNFPA@wateraid https://t.co/Fmt2QVLX06 https://t.co/5LRQ58fKM8
.@Keir_Starmer keeps saying he wants to reduce child poverty. Evidence shows the most effective way to do this is to scrap the two-child limit.
So far, Labour's decision to keep this policy in place has put 30,000 extra kids in poverty since they were elected last July.
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Today we joined @CPAGUK and @EndChildPoverty outside the treasury to mark a miserable milestone.
By this weekend, 30,000 extra children will have been pushed into poverty thanks to the two-child limit since the Labour Government came into power in July 2024.
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