Anneliese Dodds, Labour MP for Oxford East, today expressed ‘deep concern’ about new statistics on child poverty which suggest that almost a third of local children are growing up in poverty.

The statistics, released by the End Child Poverty campaign, show that Oxford East’s children are falling behind those in the richest areas where only one in ten children are growing up in poverty.

Anneliese said: “These new statistics will shock local people. We have long had problems with pockets of child poverty in our city but now almost a third of children right across Oxford East are growing up in poverty.

We all know the impact that poverty has on childrens’ life chances. It is frankly a disgrace that, in the sixth richest country in the world, child poverty appears to be growing in our nation.

I hope these figures will cause the government to rethink its cuts to social security in particular, which have hit so many families hard- not least in high-cost areas like Oxford”.

For more information, please see www.endchildpoverty.org.uk