Bevan Foundation

Our office will be closed from Monday 23 December, reopening on Monday 6 January 2025. During this period, our team will be taking a well-deserved break to spend time with friends and family and recharge for the year ahead. Please note that you won’t be able to reach us by phone during this time. If you need to get in touch with us, please feel free to email the team at info@bevanfoundation.org and we'll respond as soon as possible upon our return. We appreciate your understanding and support, and wish you a wonderful festive season!

What can be done to tackle poverty among families with a baby or toddler? The UK Government is undertaking a review of child poverty, and we recommend that it should increase maternity pay and scrap the two-child benefit cap. The Welsh Government has a part to play too, by providing affordable childcare for under-2s, developing a new baby grant, and seeking powers to provide a child payment as in Scotland. Read our report with Barnardo's Cymru 👉 https://ow.ly/Sh5n50Usvwk

To mark #InternationalMigrantsDay 2024, Access to Justice Research Officer, Elinor Mattey, highlights some of the challenges migrants face living in Wales. 👥 Like many other places in the UK, access to legal advice and representation for immigration and asylum applications is a challenge in Wales. 🚨 The no recourse to public funds (NRPF) visa condition puts people and families in a precarious position, at risk of falling into destitution. 🍽️ Free school meals are a vital support mechanism in addressing child poverty, but in secondary schools in Wales, children are routinely excluded from accessing free school meals by their parents’ immigration status. Find out more 👉 https://ow.ly/Vgea50Utime

It’s not too late for your organisation to donate to our Christmas appeal 💖 We’d really appreciate your support so we can keep giving #TheHopeOfHome to people across Wales. You’ll help us find ways to provide a decent home for people stuck in temporary accommodation and ensure there are enough social homes to go around. Donate today 👉 https://ow.ly/VsO050UpOnQ

It’s time to pay attention to the inadequacy of the UK Benefits System, says our Policy & Research Officer, Joel Davies. 🪙 The current social security system leaves many in poverty, with Universal Credit falling below the destitution threshold. This not only harms individuals but also puts extra pressure on services like the NHS. 👐 As the UK Government moves more people to Universal Credit, it's important to make sure vulnerable people get the support they need. 👥 Both Welsh and UK Governments must focus on preventing hardship and poverty to create a fairer society. Read more: https://ow.ly/ycI250UqtzC

A huge thank you to Principality Building Society for matching our 2024 appeal target of £2,500! Your support makes a huge difference to us as a small charity, and will enable us to keep speaking up for those affected by the housing crisis in Wales. If you’d like to join Principality Building Society in giving #TheHopeOfHome this Christmas, please donate today 💖 https://ow.ly/J0Hy50UpJJx

More than half of all children living in poverty in Wales live in a family where there is at least one child aged 0–4. Our new report with Barnardo's Cymru shows what can be done to reduce poverty among families with a baby or toddler. Key findings: 👶 The birth of a baby often leads to a drop in a family’s income and more costs. Taking action to put more money into family pockets (e.g. by raising maternity pay) or to reduce costs associated with having a baby (e.g. by delivering a baby bundle) can help tackle poverty. 🤝 Increasing the number of working adults in a family is crucial. To do this, there needs to be affordable childcare and support for parents to find and keep jobs. 📈 The current social security system often pushes families with young children into poverty. We need reforms to make sure benefits meet families' needs, with extra help from the Welsh Government. 🏠 High living costs, especially housing, hit families with young children hard. Tackling these costs is key to reducing poverty. Read the report: https://ow.ly/L17m50UpGWH

Although it can be a lifeline in a crisis, life in temporary accommodation is far from a luxury – and often not so “temporary” after all. Four out of ten people who lived in living in temporary accommodation at the end of March 2024 had been there for over 6 months, and nearly one in five had been there for over a year. You can help us find ways to provide a decent home for people stuck in this limbo. Please donate to our appeal to give #TheHopeOfHome today 👉 https://ow.ly/CIWE50UoUG0

The Welsh Government’s Draft Budget has been published today – but how does it measure up? Our Head of Policy, Steffan Evans, unpacks the announcements and whether they address the Bevan Foundation’s calls for: • Protection of the Discretionary Assistance Fund • Increased investment in social housing • An increase to the eligibility criteria and cash value of Welsh benefits in line with inflation • Funding for fair free school meals • Funding Phase 3 of the Flying Start Expansion 👉 https://ow.ly/rK5y50UotYG

It was great to have the whole Bevan Foundation team together for our Christmas meal yesterday 💜 Here’s to celebrating a brilliant year and looking forward to what's to come in 2025!