More than half of kids in Bristol area are living in poverty (2025)

The situation is much more desperate for children in some parts of Bristol than others

More than half of children are living in poverty in Bristol’s most deprived neighbourhood.

Across Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire area, a total of 31,654 children aged 0 to 15 were living in poverty in the year ending March 2024 - the last full year under the Conservative government - according to the latest figures from the DWP.

That’s up from 30,387 a year earlier and works out as two out of every 11 children (18%) in the area.

However, the situation is much more desperate for children in some parts of Bristol than others.

In the Lawrence Hill area of the city, more than half (54%) of children were living in poverty, a total of 2,414 kids.

In the Central district of Bristol, some 49% of children were living below the breadline.

Meanwhile, in Hartcliffe and Withywood 39% of children were living in poverty, in Filwood the ratio was 37%, and in Weston-super-Mare South in North Somerset it was 36%.

By contrast, just 3% of children in the Bristol neighbourhoods of Redland, Westbury-on-Trym and Henleaze were living in poverty last year, the lowest proportion of any ward in our county.

You can see how many children were living in poverty in your neighbourhood last year - and contact your MP about the issue - by using our interactive map:

Across the UK, a total of 4.5 million children were living in poverty in the year ending March 2024 according to the latest figures from the DWP.

That’s a record high, and an extra 121,000 children compared to a year earlier.

However, the situation is much more desperate for children in some parts of the country than others.

Bristol area wards where at least a quarter of children were living in poverty in 2023/24

Lawrence Hill (Bristol, City of): 54%

Central (Bristol) (Bristol, City of): 48%

Hartcliffe and Withywood (Bristol, City of): 39%

Filwood (Bristol, City of): 37%

Weston-super-Mare South (North Somerset): 36%

Southmead (Bristol, City of): 30%

Easton (Bristol) (Bristol, City of): 29.%

Lockleaze (Bristol, City of): 28.%

Weston-super-Mare Hillside (North Somerset): 28.%

Weston-super-Mare Central (North Somerset): 27%

Eastville (Bristol, City of): 27%

Weston-super-Mare Mid Worle (North Somerset): 26%

Hillfields (Bristol, City of): 26%

Ashley (Bristol, City of): 26%

Avonmouth and Lawrence Weston (Bristol, City of): 25%

Henbury and Brentry (Bristol, City of): 25%

Local level figures - which are calculated slightly differently to the national ones - show that in over 130 neighbourhoods, the majority of children are living in poverty.

In the Newport ward of Middlesbrough, six out of every seven children - that’s 85% of them - are living below the breadline. That’s the highest proportion of any electoral ward in the UK.

The Manningham area of Bradford has the next highest proportion, with nearly three quarters (72%) of children living in poverty.

That’s followed by Bordesley Green in Birmingham (71%), Heartlands in Birmingham (70%), Daneshouse with Stoneyholme in Burnley (69%), Bradford Moor in Bradford (69%), and Gipton & Harehills in Leeds (69%).

The figures show a stark regional divide when it comes to child poverty, with the 20 worst affected areas all in the North of England and Birmingham.

A Government spokesperson said: “No child should be in poverty – that’s why our ministerial taskforce is developing an ambitious strategy to give every child the best start in life as part of our Plan for Change.

“Alongside delivering on our Get Britain Working reforms to support people into good jobs and make everyone better off, we have increased the Living Wage, uprated benefits and are supporting 700,000 of the poorest families by introducing a Fair Repayment Rate on Universal Credit deductions to help low-income households.”

Two-child benefit cap

This April marked eight years since the introduction of the two-child benefit cap.

Figures from the End Child Poverty Coalition show that there is a link between the percentage of children living in poverty and the percentage of children impacted by the policy.

Their figures estimate that one in every nine children live in a family impacted by the cap.

The rate varies by constituency, however, and reaches as high as just over one in four children affected in Leeds South, and one in three in Hackney North and Stoke Newington.

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”.