A mixed picture of rising child poverty

WELL over a third of children are living in poverty in Surrey’s most deprived neighbourhoods.

- By DAVID DUBAS-FISHER AND VICTORIA SHIPP

Data gathered by the Advertiser shows the stark contrast in numbers of children living below the breadline in different parts of the county.

Across Surrey, a total of 21,247 children aged 0 to 15 were living in poverty in the year ending March 2024, according to the latest figures from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). That is up from 20,375 a year earlier and works out as just under one out of every 10 children (9%).

However, the numbers are not evenly spread across the county. In the Alfold, Cranleigh Rural and Ellens Green ward of Waverley, almost a third (29%) of children were living in poverty. That is the highest proportion in the county.

In the Canalside ward of Woking, just over a quarter (26%) of children were living below the breadline. Meanwhile, in Old Dean (Surrey Heath) 22% of children were living in poverty, and in Stoke (Guildford) it was 21%.