The Child Poverty (Scotland) Act 2017 places a duty on local authorities and regional health boards in Scotland to produce annual Local Child Poverty Action Reports (LCPARs) describing ongoing and planned action to tackle child poverty at local level. National guidance suggests that the LCPARs be developed collaboratively with local partners and that they bring about a ‘step change’ in action to tackle child poverty. The first round of Local Child Poverty Action Reports were published in June 2019 and are available below.
To support the development and implementation of these reports the Improvement Service hosts the National Coordinator for Local Child Poverty Action Reports. The Coordinator works with local authorities and health boards to support the development of LCPARs by acting as a child poverty champion, sharing and promoting good practice and working to ensure local reports are an effective lever for tackling child poverty in Scotland.
Resources and support available to those interested or involved in tacking child poverty locally include:
- National Guidance on Local Child Poverty Action Reports
- A feedback framework to help with self-assessment and the development of LCPARs
- An outcomes based planning tool developed by NHS Health Scotland
- Case studies of local practice to tackle child poverty developed by NHS Scotland
- An online network (the Knowledge Hub) to allow for discussion and good practice sharing
- A report from the Poverty and Inequality Commission on year one Local Child Poverty Action Reports
- A dashboard of local data relevant to child poverty
The Improvement Service is keen to support continued progress and development in relation to Local Child Poverty Action Reports. Please contact the National Coordinator if your area would benefits from:
- Individual feedback on your year one or draft report
- Input to local (or regional) planning meetings or events from nation partners
- A facilitated self-assessment process
Coronavirus - Considering the Implications for Child Poverty
The IS has developed a short paper considering the impact of COVID-19 on child poverty and considering how local authorities and health boards can use their Local Child Poverty Action Reports to address the challenges that lie ahead.