£1.5m awarded to tackle impact of child poverty in north Wales

A community organisation in north Wales is to receive £1.5 million over five years as part of a major programme aimed at reducing the impact of child poverty.

Today, BBC Children in Need, in partnership with City Bridge Foundation, The National Lottery Community Fund and Pears Foundation, has announced the first four locations set to benefit from Communities for Children.

The major funding programme will award £15 million in total in support of community-led change to reduce the impact of child poverty.

Communities for Children will support ten areas across the UK with high levels of child poverty, providing long-term funding to help local communities design and deliver their own solutions.

The programme aims to create lasting change for children and families, addressing local challenges while building the leadership, partnerships and learning needed to influence wider policy and practice.

The first four locations and organisations, each set to receive £1.5 million over five years, are:

• Holyhead, Ynys Môn (Wales) – Medrwn Môn
• Wishaw, North Lanarkshire (Scotland) – Corra Foundation
• Hackney (London) – Coffee Afrik CIC
• Seacombe, Wallasey (Liverpool City Region) – Right to Succeed

Since 2001, Medrwn Môn has supported communities and voluntary groups across Ynys Môn to become independent, resilient and resourceful.

Medrwn Môn has helped communities build on their strengths, identify local priorities and work with public services and partners to develop effective working relationships and create lasting change.

Lyndsey Campbell-Williams, Chief Officer from Medrwn Môn says: “Communities for Children will help us to build on our relationships in Holyhead, providing the resources and time for us to really invest in long-term solutions to the barriers experienced by our children, young people and their families.

“Through the programme we will work with our communities to identify the strengths, opportunities and assets that we have available to us and ensure that the voice of our communities is embedded in the changes needed to tackle the inequalities experienced by the people of Holyhead.”

Child poverty

Child poverty remains one of the UK’s most urgent and entrenched social challenges, with the latest figures showing more than 4 million children are growing up in poverty across the UK – over 1 in 4 children (27%).

While addressing the complex systemic issues which cause child poverty requires action at national and regional levels, Communities for Children recognises that much can be achieved locally.

This means working closely with communities to respond to their unique challenges and opportunities in order to drive sustainable change for children and young people.

Communities for Children intends to build strong local partnerships, support community leadership and amplify the voices of children and young people.

Through this approach, the programme aims to challenge stigma around child poverty, empower communities to address the barriers that make it harder for families to thrive, create more connected systems of support, and share learning to benefit other communities across the UK.

The programme’s Learning and Support Partners – Dartington Service Design Lab and Place Matters – will work alongside local partnerships, supporting them in their work towards the programme’s goals and, where possible, addressing the root causes.

They will also support organisations to capture and share learning to inform ongoing local and programme development.

Backed by a £15 million investment, Communities for Children is being rolled out in phases, starting with the first four locations announced today and expanding to ten areas across the UK in 2027.

This includes a significant investment from The National Lottery Community Fund, made possible by National Lottery players, alongside BBC Children in Need, City Bridge Foundation and Pears Foundation.

Whilst Communities for Children is focussed on long-term solutions to systemic issues, there are other Children in Need programmes, such as Emergency Essentials, which respond to immediate need and moments of crisis.

For more information, visit the Children in Need site here.

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