Children & Young People
Overview
Poverty is an issue which particularly affects children in London. While the child poverty rate has decreased over the past 5 years, it is still similar to the rate in 2015, and remains higher than the overall poverty rate. 37% of London’s children live below the poverty line, which is higher than any other age group.
Nearly 5 in 6 homeless households in temporary accommodation
contain children, which highlights the impact that the high cost of housing in
the capital is having on young Londoners. The unemployment rate for 16-24 year
olds is 9%, compared to 4% for 25-64 year olds.
More positively, 60% of London’s children achieved 5 A*-C grades at GCSE, compared to 53% in the rest of England. The attainment gap between disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged pupils is also far smaller in London than in the rest of England.
We have funded a number of initiatives focussed on children and young people to address some of the particular challenges they face in London and to help ensure that they are able to meet their potential.
One example is the Moving On Up Initiative, which aims to
improve the employment rate of young black men in London. Another is a secondment
we have funded for a member of Coram Children’s Legal Centre to the Greater London
Authority’s social integration team. This secondee will work on the Citizenship
and Integration Initiative, specifically looking at Young Londoners. We are also
members of the London Child Poverty Alliance, which launched a manifesto before
the 2018 local elections explaining what Councils and Councillors can do to
combat child poverty.
We have funded a number of reports about young people’s issues, including work on child trafficking, social integration and the impact of sanctions on young single parents. Some of these reports can be found below and the full range can be found here.
To explore more data about children and young people in London, visit London’s Poverty Profile.
Children & Young People: What we’re doing
Children & Young People: News
News
Successful outcomes from Citizenship and Integration Initiative
News
Citizenship and Integration Initiative: call for applications
News
Alarming number of trafficked children going missing from care, charities warn
News
New report highlights need for Peer Courts throughout London
Children & Young People: Data
See all
Data
19-year-old qualifications
Data
19-year-old qualifications by borough
Data
19-year-olds, qualifications & disadvantage
Data
Child obesity
Data
Child poverty and housing tenure
Data
Child poverty by borough
Data
Children and material deprivation
Data
GCSE attainment and demography
Data
GCSE attainment and disadvantage
Data
GCSE attainment over time
Data
Higher Education
Data
Infant mortality by borough
Data
Infant mortality over time
Data
Insecure work by age
Data
London's population by age
Data
Post-school destinations
Data
Poverty by age
Data
Rough sleepers in London
Data
Temporary accommodation over time
Data
Unemployment by age
Data