Poverty and Schools. What Can We Do?

Poverty has substantial impacts on education. In England, 60% of pupils receiving free school meals reach expected levels of reading in KS1, compared to 74% of the general pupil population.
There is a cumulative impact of poverty on health and education. This includes psychological distress, self-assessed ill health, smoking, obesity, school absence and poor education achievement.
Geographic and demographic factors influence child poverty rates. This requires place-based approaches as a response. 
Educational settings offer outstanding opportunities to address poverty and food insecurity. Efforts to address child poverty could be usefully organised around educational settings.