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Briefing
Child poverty

Poverty in Wales 2018

This briefing summarises how poverty rates in Wales are changing, and is part of JRF’s annual project to measure poverty rates and trends across the UK. It accompanies UK Poverty 2017, which looks at trends in poverty in the UK as a whole.

Written by:
Helen Barnard
Date published:

It finds that:

  • The proportion of households living in income poverty in Wales has fallen over the last 20 years, especially among pensioners and lone parents, but remains higher than in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
  • In the three-year period 1994/97, 27% of people in Wales lived in poverty; compared to 23% for the last few years.
  • Poverty among pensioners has fallen, but by less than in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. In 1994/97, pensioner poverty, after housing costs, was similar to England and lower than Scotland; by 2013/16 it was higher.
  • Poverty among couples with children has been rising since 2003/06.

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