Scottish Women More Likely to Live in Poverty Than Men, Says Scottish Trust Deed

GLASGOW, SCOTLAND, April 25, 2012 (Press-News.org) Women's charity Engender launched the Who Counts? campaign this month as a result of research from women's groups across Scotland highlighting the number of women forced into poverty because of low-pay, poor health and housing and/or a lack of access to childcare and education.

The campaign is funded by the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, and aims to persuade public bodies to address poverty among women now before government efficiency savings drive down wages even further and condemn thousands more women and children to the poverty trap.

Niki Kandirikirira, Engender's Executive Director said, "We know how many children, pensioners and households are in poverty but it's the statistics themselves that reveal why the numbers are proving so hard to bring down. At no point do we recognise the gendered nature of poverty. Measures to tackle poverty will fail to deliver until we recognise that gender inequality is in itself a root cause."

Local councils have a legal obligation to assess the impact of their policies on both men and women, but only around a third of those who took part in the research project thought this was happening. In addition, drop-in events run by Engender across Scotland gathered personal experiences of poverty from women who called by.

A spokesperson for Debt Solutions Company, Scottish Trust Deed, said: "Women account for over 90% of lone parents in Scotland and 60% of unpaid carers. There are some lone parent families struggling by on less than half of the UK's median income, which is considered to be about GBP7,000 a year, yet some of the recent policy decisions are going to hit them hard and take away some of this meagre income."

As a full time mother to three kids under ten, 33-year old Lindzi Burke understands the problems all too well. She lost her previous job when the training company she worked for collapsed and has only just started back at work part-time after sixteen months. "I have worked in highly paid jobs in the past but can't get into those sectors. Now I have to give this my best shot. You have to start somewhere. I can't afford to think of us as poor. If I thought that way it would be hard to get out of my bed in the morning. To be honest the pay is not much more than being on benefits. But it's good to be doing it on my own and I never know what might come out of this."

"You need to be able to balance work with being there for your children. But it's hard because love doesn't put shoes on their feet! All parents no matter what their circumstances need better support and advice especially when it comes to debt advice."

"While there has been an increase in child tax credits in 2011/2012, working tax credits have been reduced.  Lone parents with a child aged seven or over now cannot get income support either and childcare contributions have been cut by 10%. The only hope these parents have got is if the local governments make sure their spending decisions protect the poorest families. If not, more families will descend into poverty."

The charity Save the Children issued warnings recently that the numbers of children living in severe poverty in Scotland will rise rapidly due to a lack of jobs. In Glasgow 18 people chase every vacancy compared to an average of 6 in England. However, even children with working parents are at high risk of poverty - the Joseph Rowntree Foundation reported in 2010 that half of children living in poverty belong to working families.

"There's only so long cash-strapped families can hold out with these sorts of figures to live on," said the spokesperson. "This is how chronic debt begins and increasing costs of living ends up driving desperate families into the arms of credit card lenders, pay day loan companies and loan sharks."

Scottish Trust Deed provide help and advice on the ScottishTrust Deed debt solution. With a Trust Deed you can write off up to 90% of your debt and be completely debt free in 36 months. Our experienced advisors are only a phone call away to help you with your debt problems.

Website: http://www.scottishtrustdeed.co.uk