An estimated 7,800 children across the Highlands could benefit from the Scottish Government’s ground-breaking anti-poverty payment, new figures have revealed.
The Scottish Child Payment will be worth £10 per child for low-income families by the end of 2022, with introduction for under-6s starting by early 2021.
Latest figures from the Scottish Fiscal Commission estimate that 194,000 children aged under six in Scotland will be eligible for the new Scottish Child Payment – with 7,800 children and families estimated to benefit in the Highlands.
The brand-new benefit was described as a “game changer” and a “lifeline” by anti-poverty campaigners and is central to the SNP’s ambitions to tackle child poverty.
Commenting, SNP MSP Maree Todd (pictured) said:
“The Scottish Child Payment is an ambitious and ground-breaking new benefit which will directly tackle child poverty across the country.
“This support is needed more than ever, and when this additional £10 per week per child becomes available in February, it will be a lifeline for many such families in the Highlands.
“It will help reduce financial pressures and demonstrates the potential of social security to make a positive difference and reflect our society’s shared values of compassion and fairness.
“Tory cuts are driving too many families in the Highlands into poverty – but the SNP is determined to use every power at our disposal to help families make ends meet.”
