Fuel Poverty: Impacts on Children, Young People and Families

Child Poverty in Northern Ireland Goretti Horgan

Relative Child Poverty NI 2002/03 – 2013/14 Number and percentage of children living in relative poverty in NI Year Number % 2002/03 103,100 24% 2003/04 110,300 26% 2004/05 105,800 25% 2005/06 100,200 2006/07 96,800 23% 2007/08 100,000 2008/09 99,300 2009/10 114,600 2010/11 94,600 22% 2011/12 92,100 21% 2012/13 89,300 20% 2013/14 100,500  

Child relative poverty rates (%) by region Year NI UK RoI EU27 2002/03 24% 22% 21% NA 2003/04 26% 23% 2004/05 25% 20% 2005/06 2006/07 19% 2007/08 18% 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 17% 2011/12 2012/13 16% 2013/14

Proportion of individuals living in households without savings by region and lifecycle   2003/04 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/9 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 All individuals NI 47 44 48 51 46 53 54 56 UK 33 32 36 38 39 42 Children 49 52 55 58 60 40 45 50 Working age adults 57 34 35 41 Pensioners 22 21 20 25 24 Source: DSD, Households Below Average Income (NI)

Child combined income and material deprivation poverty rates (%) for children by urban/rural location   2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 NI 16 12 14 15 17 11 BMUA 13 10 Urban NI 20 23 22 Rural NI 7 18 9 Source: DSD, Households Below Average Income 1. New questions about four additional material deprivation items for children were introduced into the 2010/11 FRS and from 2011/12 four questions from the original suite were removed. Figures from the old and new suite of questions are not comparable. Figures from the new suite of questions are shown in italics.

Proportion of individuals in NI living in households with incomes between 50% and 60% of median household income (UK median) by lifecycle group   2003/04 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 All individuals 9% 8% 10% Children 15% 12% 13% 11% Working-age adults 7% 5% 6% Pensioners

Proportion of individuals in NI living in households with incomes between 60% and 70% of household median income (UK median) by lifecycle group   2003/04 2004/05 2005/06 2006/07 2007/08 2008/09 2009/10 2010/11 2011/12 2012/13 2013/14 All individuals 10% 9% 12% 11% Children 15% 13% 17% 14% Working-age adults 7% 8% Pensioners

Earnings gaps for full and part-time NI employees compared to UK employees (%)   2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 Full- time 88.9 89.3 90.7 87.5 87.2 89.5 87.7 89.2 90.4 89.6 88.3 Part-time 97.3 101.7 95.1 98.1 102.0 104.2 97.0 100.1 95.6 97.1 96.7 Source: DETI, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings

Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey 2013 Almost half of the population had problems heating their homes; e.g. they had to turn the heating down or off or only heat part of their homes in the winter. More than 1 in 10 households across the region reported they cannot afford to keep the home warm enough to keep it damp-free…. concentration of poverty could mean most people in the most deprived areas cannot afford to keep their homes damp-free.

What this means for children… 75,000 children are growing up in damp home. More than half of all children (241,000) are living in households that could not pay an unexpected expense of £500 One in ten children are living in households that are behind with mortgage and rent payments 8 percent are living in households that are in arrears with fuel bills.

Children and young people put a warm home as the number one requirement for a “good life” (after the love of their family)