Assessing Community Need 

Statistics show that North Ayrshire has high levels of people living in poverty, with the second highest rate of child poverty in Scotland, equating to 7141 or 29%.

This is against a national average of 24% which is only second to Glasgow City, with a rate of 32%. Fifty two (28%) of North Ayrshire’s 186 data zones are in the 15% most deprived in Scotland (rising from 51 (27%) in 2016).  

A focus on the Cost of the School Day and Child Poverty is central to the work of the Connected Communities (CLD) service in North Ayrshire. This is facilitated by the North Ayrshire CLD Strategic Plan which includes the key priorities of young people’s voice and rights, poverty and inequality, and health and wellbeing.

This work is further enabled by their Youth Participation Strategy and aligned to the Child Poverty Strategy, Children’s Services Plan, and Education Service Plan. 

The current North Ayrshire approach builds upon priorities previously identified by young people during the Year of Young People legacy plan consultation. Young people highlighted that issues associated with child poverty, and the cost of the school day were top concerns.

They voiced that access to food (during the school day and holidays and weekends); and, the costs of school transport, school trips and visits (inc. extra-curricular activities), school uniforms, and materials needed for going to school, as priorities. 

Description  

The Connected Communities service working jointly with education services, has utilised its well-embedded method of ‘by young people, for young people’ (enshrined in their Youth Participation Strategy) - to support young people’s participation in influencing a wide range of local authority commitments to mitigate against child poverty and the cost of the school day. 

Key features of the approach include: 

• young people leading discussions about Child Poverty, shaping policy and practice for North Ayrshire Council and partners 
• young people being involved in a co design, co production and co delivery model for all new initiatives identified through the available data
• producing visible changes to lower the cost of the school day for young people and their families

North Ayrshire is the first ‘Child Centred Council’ in Scotland. This aims to protect and uphold young people’s rights and tackle child poverty at the heart of all the work they do.

Connected Communities youth workers support young people to speak ‘truth to power’ and challenge officials and decision-makers as duty bearers to ensure young people’s voice is respected and acted on in relation to Child Poverty. 

Impact 

The following examples illustrate the types of activity young people have participated in, and led: 

The Young person's Cost of the School Day conference.

This brought 250 young people together from primary and secondary schools to discuss key issues and concerns around the cost of the school day and child poverty. 

This raised awareness of the child poverty action plan commitments and secured a funding commitment, further strengthened pupil voice about child poverty, and helped develop a shared understanding and language around poverty aimed at reducing stigma.

It has led to changes such as the introduction of non-branded uniform policy in all schools and a policy of no gifts for teachers. 

Joint Cabinet Live

Child poverty features as a key theme at Joint Cabinet meetings. The focus is informed by the contributions of almost 500 secondary aged young people through youth led conversation cafés in school and community settings.

The Joint Cabinet involves 110 young people who engage with the local authority Chief Executive, Leader, Elected Members and Directors.  The result is production of a ‘you said we did’ action plan showing young people how their contributions shape policy. 

Primary 7 Youth Council

Four times a year, 150 primary aged young people get together for a day of interactive workshops. Child poverty features in all of these Youth Council gatherings to ensure young people have the opportunity to share their experiences and co design solutions for change. 

Youth Forums

Young people lead conversations to affect change in their communities. This has led to youth forums setting up and leading increased numbers of school clothing swap shops, which work alongside schools and parent councils to provide access to free uniforms, coats, shoes, stationery and toiletries.

Youth forums are also active in providing an increased number of school and community based breakfast clubs e.g. One of the community breakfast clubs has around 50 people attending weekly. 

Joint Youth Forum

Agreed to work with the council to create a ‘young person edit’ of the corporate Child Poverty strategic plan to share with young people across primary and secondary schools. 

Council Cabinet

a working group involving young people as equal members created a report for the Council Cabinet with an associated action plan to help address poverty related issues.  

In addition, the youth led and community Participatory Budgeting (PB) processes have a key focus on ‘poverty and inequality’ to support local groups and initiatives deliver activities and support for young people to address child poverty and cost of living. 

Pupil Equity Funding (PEF)

Pupil Equity Funding plans are in place in every school, providing a range of interventions including free healthy snacks in all primary schools. 

Next Steps 

Connected Communities officers, and Education officers are working jointly to develop an online ideas bank of case studies and good practice to share with other schools and partners to support cost of the school day work in North Ayrshire. 

With the continuing rise in the cost of living, more families are accessing support from services. This has highlighted the opportunities to broaden partnership approaches to include other services such as social work and police.   

Reflections and Quotes on Impact 

Wider local authority commitments to tackling child poverty.

It is recognised the approaches to youth participation on child poverty complements the wider local authority work on the cost of living. This includes a total of 11,500 meals provided for young people in North Ayrshire during four weeks in the 2023 summer holidays. They also:

• maximised access to transport for under-22 year olds
• reduced rising home energy bills through the Energy Smart initiative
• streamlined access to benefits
• looked at Housing Allocation Policy through the lens of Child Poverty                         

Quotes 

“Collaboration across schools and the community learning and development team has supported our action across schools to reduce the Cost of the School Day. Working together has led to opportunities to communicate more closely with school staff and act upon feedback from the children and young people.

Funding to support school clothing, breakfast clubs, residential trips and healthy snacks are some of the many initiatives, which are now in place in our schools. The strength of the partnership between Donna Anderson from CLD and myself in Education, has allowed us to benefit from shared approaches to supporting our children and young people across North Ayrshire”  Alison Allan, Senior Manager (Education) North Ayrshire Council 

"Young people are the here and now – they have valid points that need to be considered.  Especially in relation to COTSD – because if basic needs aren’t met then how are they expected to learn. 

External factors that affect young people affect their education.  It is essential that young peoples are part of this conversation now and in the future as they are the ones living it and have the knowledge of what it is like." Justin Jones, young person from introduction at the COTSD Conference.

Further Information  

Donna Anderson, Youth Participation and Democracy Officer  

Cost of the School Day Spotlight 1: North Ayrshire Council | CPAG