3,260 children (12.95%) in 950 Derry homes poorer due to two-child limit on Universal Credit and Child Tax Credit

A new report from the End Child Poverty Coalition finds a strong correlation between the percentage of children living in poverty in constituencies like Foyle and the percentage of children impacted by the policy.

The NI Anti-Poverty Network, a member of the coalition, is called for the cap on Universal Credit (UC) and Child Tax Credits (CTC) that prevents parents with a third child born on or after April 2017 from claiming extra support, to be abolished.

The coalition have described the cap as a false economy, pointing out that its abolition would boost the Derry economy by £4,779,040.

Data from the ‘At the Limit’ report show that in 2022/23, 6,363 (25.3 per cent) of 25,168 children in Foyle were living in relative poverty.

The authors argue that where you have high levels of child poverty, you have a higher proportion of families impacted.

This, they say, is borne out in Derry where in 2022/23, 3,260 children (12.95 per cent) in 950 households were poorer as a result of the two-child cap.

The report estimates the economic benefit of scrapping the cap in Foyle at £4,779,040 a year.

Joseph Howes, CEO of Buttle UK and Chair of the End Child Poverty Coalition said: “Scrapping the two-child limit is a crucial first step to address rising child poverty across the UK.

"By doing this the government could also see a boost to local economies, targeting some of the most deprived areas of the country. We don’t want to see another year of families suffering as a result of the two-child limit. The government must scrap this policy as part of their soon to be published strategy to tackle child poverty.”

Rosie, a mother of three children impacted by the two-child limit, said: “I have found myself relying on credit cards and ‘buy now pay later’ for essential items like bills and fresh food, fruit and vegetables to feed three growing children. My children have missed out on extracurricular activities which inevitably would have had a positive impact on their education, social skills and self-confidence.”

A copy of ‘At the Limit’ and the full data are available to download here: https://endchildpoverty.org.uk/two_child_limit-2025/