New research has found the North East has the second highest rate of child poverty within the UK.

Research conducted by Loughborough University on behalf of the End Child Poverty Coalition has found that most of the region’s constituencies had at least one-in-four children in poverty.

The research, based on figures published at the start of the year - taking into account new constituency boundaries for the next General Election - found poverty rates were particularly high for the North West, North East and Wales.

It found that two-thirds of all constituencies have at least 25 per cent of children in poverty.

The highest level was found in the North West, which had 90 per cent of constituencies with at least one in four children in poverty, followed by the North East (89%), West Midlands (89%) and Wales (88%).

Reducing child poverty is one of the six points of The Northern Echo's manifesto, which calls on Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer to back its campaign for the North East ahead of the upcoming General Election.

MP for City of Durham, Mary Kelly Foy said: "The findings of the report released today by the End Child Poverty coalition are stark reading. 

"These damning statistics are further proof that this Conservative Government isn’t just ineffective, but is heaping misery onto the most vulnerable in society. 

"We urgently need a Labour Government that will lift children and parents out of the poverty caused by 14 years of Tory economic mismanagement.

"Alongside that Labour Government, our newly elected Labour Mayor, Kim McGuinness, has said that she will have a relentless focus on ending child poverty in Durham and the wider North East. It is a huge task but one that Labour in power can, and will, address."

Speaking on child poverty figures in February this year, North East Mayor Kim McGuinness said: "If a factory was closing down we’d hear Tory ministers in Parliament pledging action. But when those child poverty figures emerged there was complete silence from officials in London – we’re simply too far north for them to care.

“Instead, our region has to unite and help each other.

“Every investment decision I make as mayor will be based on what this project will do to end child poverty.

“The long-term solution to child poverty is two-fold; we need more well paid jobs in the foundational economy and we need better early childhood services.

“I want the North East to see a new era of childhood support as a way of tackling poverty and removing barriers to work.”

Levels were lowest in Northern Ireland (22 per cent), East of England (31 per cent) and the South East (44 per cent), according to the research, while Scotland had just over half of constituencies (54 per cent) with a child poverty rate of at least one in four.

The university’s Centre for Research in Social Police said child poverty rates at the constituency level are “directly and strongly correlated with the percentage of children affected by the two-child limit in that local area”.

It argued this provides “further evidence that the policy is a key driver of child poverty”.

Speaking on child poverty in March, Conservative Peter Gibson, who will be defending his Darlington seat in the upcoming General Election, said: “This Government has reduced child poverty and tackled poverty by raising wages, cutting taxes, growing the economy and increasing employment and provided unprecedented support across the country.

“We’ve introduced the Household Support Fund, extended school meals and indeed introduced the amazing Holiday Activities Fund programme which will see almost half a million pounds spent In Darlington this year.”

The two-child limit, introduced under the Conservative Government in 2017 and restricting Child Tax Credit and Universal Credit to the first two children in most households, is a policy charities and campaigners have repeatedly said should be scrapped.

Last month, Sir Keir said he would scrap the cap “in an ideal world” but added that “we haven’t got the resources to do it at the moment”.

Official figures released earlier this year showed the estimated total number of people in relative low income was at 14.35 million in the year to March 2023, with some 4.33 million of those being children.

The latest figure for children was the highest since comparable records for the UK began in 2002/03.

A household is considered to be in relative poverty if it falls below 60 per cent of the median income after housing costs.

This research comes days after the Joseph Rowntree Foundation said their findings indicated there are 1.7 million people in the UK who are just £20 a week away from the poverty line.

Among these people, around 400,000 were children and around 500,000 were pensioners.

An estimated 900,000 people are just £10 a week from the poverty line, including around 200,000 children and 300,000 pensioners, the foundation’s analysis suggested.

The End Child Poverty Coalition, which includes the Child Poverty Action Group and Save the Children UK, is warning political parties they must prioritise child poverty in their campaigns with “bold and decisive action”, including a commitment to the removal of the two-child limit to benefit payments and the benefit cap.

Joseph Howes, chairman of the End Child Poverty Coalition and chief executive of the charity Buttle UK, said: “The data is undeniable – too many children are in a cycle of deprivation that affects their health, education, and future prospects.

‘It is time to dismantle these barriers and the elections will provide a critical platform for committing to systemic changes to uplift families and give every child the opportunity to thrive.”

Mark Russell, chief executive of The Children’s Society said the scale of child poverty is “deeply damaging the lives and futures of a generation of children”.

He added: “We need decisive action from political leaders to address rising child poverty.

Most read:

Dive into the heart of your community with a digital subscription to The Northern Echo! Click here.

“The first steps the next government should take is scrapping the two child limit and the benefits cap – these together have had a catastrophic effect, pushing many more families into deep poverty.”

Sara Ogilvie, director of policy, rights and advocacy at Child Poverty Action Group said: “Children won’t get a say in this election, yet child poverty is at a record high with kids in every corner of the country cut off from opportunities to thrive.

“Their well-being is the responsibility of every politician and should be a policy priority over the next few weeks and beyond.”