Dear

Last week the London Growth Plan developed by the Mayor of London & London Councils was published. We were at the launch and Katherine has written about her reflections on the event here. The plan acknowledges that that economic growth on its own won’t address poverty & makes welcome commitments to taking actions to make growth more inclusive. But we know that this will not happen overnight and the 700,000 children in poverty in London need change today. The case for acting via the social security system and specifically by abolishing the 2-child limit & benefit cap as the only way to significantly reduce child poverty in the short-term is getting stronger by the day as this report from the Resolution Foundation, also published last week shows and is echoed in the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights’  concluding observations on the seventh periodic report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland published. We, along with so many of you and other partners, will keep reiterating this message in all the conversations we have with decision makers ahead of the child poverty strategy being published in the Spring. 

4in10 Annual Survey

Yes it's that time of year again where we ask you, our members, to fill in a quick survey, to tell us about what matters most for you right now and what you'd like us to be doing about it. It is very short and we will be eternally grateful!

International Women's Day

Finally, Happy International Women's Day for Saturday! There are lots of hugely varied and engaging events, many of them free, going on across London. A special shout out for one being run by 4in10 member Adanna Women's Support Group on 22 March looking at the impact gender inequalities have on the overall wellbeing on the lives of women and more so on the lives of women of colour. Do consider going along if you are free. 

Best wishes

Katherine, Emily and Maddie  

Calls to Action

• Praxis have launched a campaign asking people to send an email to email the Ministers responsible for child poverty telling them 'to protect EVERY child from poverty'
• The Museum of Homelessness are calling for volunteers 18-25 and have lived experience of poverty, inequity, or homelessness to join a youth-led campaigning collective to challenge those in power. If you are interested in joining please click here.
• The Greater London Authority is leading and coordinating London Democracy Week. It will take place from 10–16 March 2025 and aims to equip Londoners with the tools and knowledge they need to actively participate in the democratic process and civic life all year round. Find out how to take part here.
  
  

4in10 Events: free training, information and advice and networking opportunities

A new deal for young people? Lessons from VRUs and ambitions for young people’s futures

2nd April 2025, 11:00am-12:30pm

Online - free

Join us online to consider both the social and political landscape of youth support. How do we protect young people from involvement in violence by looking upstream at the particular needs and vulnerabilities that young people across London face?

Niven Rennie, a leading expert on interventions that work for and with young people draws upon his experience in the police force, as well as the former Director of Scotland’s Violence Reduction Unit and Chair of the Hope Collective in drafting an important report ‘Violence Reduction Units at a Crossroads – A Positive Future?’

Child Poverty Free Community Events - Croydon

9th April 2025 from 10:00 AM to 12:00 PM

In Person - free

4 in10 is hosting an in-person two-hour event for current or prospective members of London's Child Poverty Network.

The purpose of this event will be to provide local organisations across Croydon with up to date information on the context of child poverty across the borough. We will highlight growing or emerging challenges as well as provide an overview of the training and support that 4in10 provides and our current activities. There will also be an opportunity to meet or catch up with local organisations in the network; finding out who might be working on similar issues in neighbouring communities. 

We are extremely grateful to our friends at Croydon Voluntary Action (CVA) for hosting us and to Steve Phaure and Shalina Alabaksh at CVA for supporting the planning of this event. 

Training and Events

• CYMPH are holding a lunch and learning webinar Words Matter: Improving mental health by ending verbal abuse, Mar 26, 2025 12:00 - 1.15
• Community Southwark are hosting a series of training sessions including specifically a session with Superhighways on Power BI by Microsoft
• Made of Money are hosting a series of training courses called 'Money Springboard - Supporting care-experienced young people with money' on the following days. The last of these is on Wednesday 12th March 2025: Supporting young people to making a budget for leaving care
• Money Guiders Network are hosting two events:
  • Mindfulness for Money Guiders on Tuesday 18 March 11.00-12.30 ONLINE with Sham Minhas – coach, trainer and money guider – learn some basic techniques to use yourself or share with people you support. Plus an intro to This Way Up
  • The Psychology of Money on Tuesday 29 April 10.00-14.00 IN PERSON in London N7 with Stian Reimers – professor of psychology with 2 decades of experience researching financial behaviour and exploring how people make decisions involving money and QSA trustee – understand your own relationship with money, how to understand other people’s relationship with money and how to use this knowledge to give better money help. Even if you don’t consider yourself a direct money guider – you are very welcome to come. 
• St Luke's Community Centre are starting a new new mother and baby group on Wednesdays from 10-11.30 
• The HEAR Network and Refugee Council, in partnership with Superhighways are providing digital and tech Advice Days! These are designed to get assistance with digital tools, tech troubleshooting, or just enhancing your online skills. These advice days are exclusively for members of the HEAR Network and Refugee Council and are being held on March 27th and April 24th.

Reports, Data and Resources

• The Resolution Foundation has produced a briefing note 'Turning the tide - What it will take to reduce child poverty in the UK'
• CPAG have released a report called 'Building Blocks: delivering a child poverty strategy' 
• Toynbee Hall have published "The crisis makes us more alone”: A Participatory Action Research investigation into emotional support for young people in the context of the cost-of-living crisis 
• Dr. Sara Reis from UK Women's Budget Group has shared the slides from her presentation in February called Women’s and Children’s Poverty: Making the Links
• Resolve Poverty have released an article by Sophie Padgett from Trussell about a vision is for a UK without the need for food banks  
• UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has published its concluding observations on the seventh periodic report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The Big Issue has released an article on the report and you can also read about the experiences of members of the GRIPP project when they went to give evidence to the Committee last month here. 
• Just Fair have written an article looking at the work they've been doing in London to break down barriers to using human rights based approaches
• Raising the Nation Play Commission has done an inquiry into why children are playing less in England which calls on the Government to increase and ringfence school playtime
• London Councils has produced an article called 'Continued Drop in School Places Demand Creates Impossible Choice' 
• Maddie from 4in10 has written an blog post about a visit to RJ4All. This is one of a series of visits we are doing to our members to better explore how we can support you as a team. If you are interested in this please email maddie.henson@4in10.org.uk
• CYMPHC have released a report called 'A Step Towards Change - Members perspectives on government policies on children and young people’s mental health'
• Resource for London and London Plus have launched a London Calling, a new website sharing events, training and funding opportunities for London's charities, CICs and social enterprises with the aim of connecting and supporting thousands of London-based charities. 

Jobs and Trustee Vacancies

Spotlight Interview

We have the latest in our series of spotlight interviews. This time with our new member Cash Perks.

1. How are you helping to tackle child poverty in London?

Cash Perks is transforming the way hardship funds reach vulnerable families by providing instant, cash-first support. Our innovative payment solution allows councils, housing associations, charities and community organisations to instantly send emergency funds directly via SMS, which can be withdrawn 24/7 for free at thousands of ATMs nationwide without the need for a bank account or card. This ensures families in crisis can access essential financial support quickly and with dignity, reducing the stress and stigma often associated with traditional aid like food parcels or shopping vouchers.

2. Tell us something you are excited about?

We’re excited about the growing adoption of Cash Perks by almost 50 organisations of all shapes and sizes across the capital. In London that includes leading councils such as; Barking and Dagenham, Camden, Haringey, RBKC and Lambeth through to diverse frontline charities such; Z2K, Wimbledon Guild, CAB Kensington and Chelsea, North Paddington Food Bank and Solace Women’s Aid.

Hearing the real -life benefit of our service—families getting the immediate support they need without unnecessary delays—is incredibly rewarding. When clients collect their money, we often embed surveys that help measure the impact and gain valuable insights and feedback such as this from someone receiving their funds – “Brilliant experience eternally grateful for the help escaping domestic violence & accessing help to move to a safe home. Really appreciated!”

3. Share with our members something positive about your organisation’s achievement or service?

Within the next few weeks, we will reach a huge milestone of disbursing over £10 million of hardship funds directly to struggling families. It’s been an amazing journey from recognising there must be a better way of getting emergency financial support to people – especially those that are unbanked or in vulnerable circumstances to reaching this important landmark.  We were also hugely honoured last year to win two awards, recognised by The Big Issue as one of their Changemakers 2024 and as the best Financial Inclusion Innovation at the nation Pay360 Awards.

4. What can other network members learn from you or find out more about through you?

Like an increasing number of civil society organisations, we advocate for a cash-first approach to poverty relief, which research shows is the most effective way to support people in crisis. We’re happy to share our experiences with organisations looking to transition to cash-based support, helping them navigate concerns around security, fraud, and administration, while also reducing time and delivery costs and most importantly maximising the impact of their funds through engagement in longer-term holistic support.

5. What would most help you achieve your goals?

Greater collaboration! The more organisations that embrace cash-first support, the bigger the impact we can have on tackling poverty. We’d love to connect with more charities, councils, and funders who are interested in partnership. Advocacy for direct cash assistance at policy levels would also help ensure more families receive the support they need in the most effective way possible.

6. Why did you join 4in10? What do you enjoy about being part of the 4in10 network?

We joined 4in10 because we share its commitment to addressing child poverty in London. We hope that being part of the network allows us to collaborate with like-minded organisations, learn from others’ experiences, and advocate for systemic change. We love the sense of collective action and the opportunity to share insights on how cash-first solutions can play a key role in reducing financial hardship for families.

To see this or our back catalogue of spotlight interviews please see our blog.

Funding Opportunities

Ellis Campbell Foundation

Since 2020 the Foundation’s objective has been to build youth power and leadership systemically, through youth led opportunities for marginalised young people outside Greater London. 

They have various different funds which have different deadlines and an mounts.

London Catalyst

They have a few different funding streams one stream is their PROJECT GRANTS. In this fund, priority is given to new initiatives and service developments targeted at people disadvantaged as a result of long-term ill-health, disability and poverty. These are awarded to organisations with an income of £500,000 or less. 

The deadline for this fund is 15th March.

The Woodward Charitable Trust

Each year the Trustees of the Woodward Charitable Trust set aside funds for summer play schemes for children from disadvantaged backgrounds between the ages of 5-16 years.

Trustees only fund programmes that run for a minimum of 2 weeks, 10 full days or 20 half days across the summer holidays. 

This year's fund is open from 24th February 2025 until 12 noon on Friday 4th April 2025.

SYP Trust

SYP Trust aims to bring about positive change where it is needed in the lives of children and young people in London.

Through its grants it aims to:

• Reach children and young people who may be disadvantaged due to their physical or intellectual capacity, citizenship status, race, health and life expectancy, sexual orientation or previous criminal activity.

• Reach children and young people who fall between the gaps of high and low attainment and privilege, who are often left without access to opportunities and whose potential is frequently overlooked.

• Encourage organisations to be flexible and creative in their approach, to be bold and try innovative and untested ideas that have the potential to have meaningful impacts and bring young people into their leadership and decision making.

First stage applications for their June 2025 funding round are open until the 31st March 2025 

You are welcome to pass this newsletter onto your networks. We welcome new members and although much of what we do is available to members and non-members, members are the first to know and get first chance to book training and so on.

As well as your reports, news and data, please send us information about small local grant givers, discounts and vouchers available, new support services, in fact anything that might help alleviate the impact of poverty in small ways and support other organisations to do their work. We will continue to demand systemic change but hope that these tips will be of immediate use. Anything you can share send it our way!

Check your entry on the 4in10 database of all voluntary organisations changing and challenging the impact of poverty on London’s children and their families. Let us know of any errors or changes you would like and please tell us about any organisations we may have missed.

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