Prioritise Poverty Prevention — Taxpayers Against Poverty
4.5 million
That number is rising. Deep poverty and destitution are rising faster.
children in the UK are growing up in poverty
A child growing up in poverty in Britain today is more likely to fall ill. More likely to struggle at school. More likely to see their own children grow up the same way.
This is a consequence of a system that waits for people to fall into crisis, then spends a fortune responding, instead of investing in prevention.
Properly funded schools. An NHS that is not permanently stretched. Decent housing. A benefits system keeps people out of absolute poverty. These are not luxuries. They are what prevention looks like.
Behind every statistic are lives being constrained. Children growing up without security, parents under constant strain, people unable to plan, progress, or fulfil their potential. Poverty is not just a financial cost, it is a human one. It limits choices, damages wellbeing, and quietly shapes the course of entire lives. When we fail to prevent it, we are not just spending more, we are accepting avoidable hardship and the loss of opportunity for millions.
"Whatever your feeling, opinion, or judgement, poverty is never the child's fault."
Marcus Rashford MBE
Three in five low-paid workers skipped meals, could not heat their homes, or fell behind on bills last year. One in five had less than £10 left each week after paying for essentials.
They work. They pay their taxes. The system still fails them, because it is built to manage crisis, not to prevent working people from falling into it.
STATISTICS TAKEN FROM THE Living Wage Foundation, Life on Low Pay report, 2025
We know prevention works. We know it costs less. The Nicolson Report, which Taxpayers Against Poverty produced this year, estimates poverty costs the UK over £75 billion a year. That money could build the services that stop people falling into hardship. Instead, it is spent catching them after they have already fallen.
Every government promises to tackle poverty. None have committed to a simple principle: prevention first.
We are asking them to start.
What we are asking MPs to do
Sign the Poverty Prevention Pledge — a public commitment to prioritise poverty prevention in their political work and decision-making, and to consider the poverty prevention impact of legislation before they vote.
Before every vote, ask: will this protect families, or leave them more exposed? It is a straightforward commitment. No MP, from any party, should have difficulty making it.
£75 billion a year
That is what poverty costs the UK — in NHS pressure, lost tax revenue, welfare spending, and reduced economic output. Prevention is cheaper. It is also the right thing to do.
Protect our children. Add your name.
We will deliver this petition to every MP in Parliament and keep you updated as the campaign grows.
Signed? Share it. Every name adds pressure on MPs to act.
Independent. Non-partisan. Evidence-led.
Founded by the late Rev Paul Nicolson. Led by Tom Burgess.
taxpayersagainstpoverty.org.uk
Taxpayers Against Poverty
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