Four ways we raised awareness in Challenge Poverty Week

As Challenge Poverty Week comes to an end, we reflect on how we used the campaign to raise awareness of poverty

Last week, the Bevan Foundation took part in Challenge Poverty Week, an annual campaign which aims to raise awareness of poverty and encourages people and organisations to tackle poverty in their communities.

Across the week, we showed how people in Wales are affected by poverty, and shared our ideas to make a real difference.

1. Campaigning for Fair Free School Meals

Throughout the week, the Bevan Foundation ran a campaign calling for Fair Free School Meals in Wales. Alongside partner organisations, we’ve written to the First Minister to urge the Welsh Government to make sure every child in Wales gets a meal at lunchtime, regardless of their needs, where they were born, or what their citizenship is.

The campaign doesn’t end there – we’re going to keep calling for change to Free School Meals until the policy is fair and all children in Wales are able to get a meal at lunchtime. You can help by continuing to spread the word.

2. Sharing insights around money management apps

The ongoing cost-of-living crisis means that many people are looking for different ways to make their money go further. On Tuesday 15^th October, we hosted a webinar where people found out more about the key findings from our research around the harms and benefits of money management apps for people on low incomes. We found that the features of these apps can provide a real lifeline, enabling people to save more and understand their spending habits, but that there are potential risks with some of the features being confusing and leaving people short.

3. Spreading the word about poverty

We’ve been out and about helping people and organisations to understand poverty better. Head of Policy (Poverty), Steffan Evans, was delighted to join Cynon Taf Community Housing Group to share some insights from our work on poverty with their staff as they develop their new strategy as an organisation. During the week, Steffan also spoke to medics at Cardiff University Medical School, and at Heledd Fychan MS’s eighth cost of living network event in Tonyrefail.

4. Hearing people’s views around the supply of social housing

More secure, decent and genuinely affordable housing would help to avoid people becoming homeless, and would help the Welsh housing system to better meet people’s needs. Towards the end of Challenge Poverty Week, we hosted a virtual roundtable on housing supply. We heard people’s views around around the barriers that are preventing the development of social and community housing, and ideas for solutions to unlock the supply of more homes in Wales.