Unpacking why mealtimes matter in early childhood centres for disadvantaged communities

This year, Anti-Poverty Week 2024 (13-19 October) continues its campaign to end child poverty in Australia. Dr Bonnie Searle (@BonnieSearle3) from The University of Queensland (@UQ_News) and the Life Course Centre (@lifecourseAust) has been examining meals in early childhood centres for children experiencing poverty, and how ensuring the quality and quantity of the food can help children thrive from an early age.

Service DeliveryLife Course Centre23 October 2024Poverty, Children, health, Equity, schools

How food insecurity is biting: Australians are going hungry

@Anti-Poverty Week is an event held every October to raise awareness and understanding of the causes and consequences of poverty in Australia, and to encourage action to end it. In today’s blog, Life Course Centre (@lifecourseAust) Research Fellow Dr Chandana Maitra from the University of Sydney (@Sydney_Uni) highlights food insecurity which is a hidden and overlooked socio-economic problem in Australia.

IssuesLife Course Centre22 October 2024Poverty, Lived/consumer experience, economy

The Big Question: How can we help end child poverty in Australia?

This week's posts are being sourced by the Life Course Centre(@lifecourseAust) to continue to the conversation on social and economic disadvantage following last week’s Anti-Poverty Week (@AntiPovertyWeek). Today @lifecourseAust researchers share approaches that could help end child poverty in Australia.

Creating using evidenceLife Course Centre21 October 2024Children, Poverty, housing and homelessness

Shifting narratives about poverty in Australia

This is the final part of a 3-part series by Sharon Bessell and Cadhla O’Sullivan from the Children’s Policy Centre at ANU. Today’s post covers welfare policy narratives of individual blame and how they don’t reflect the reality of children’s lives.

Policy and governancePower to Persuade19 July 2024Children, Poverty, wellbeing, Policy Research

Reducing poverty and improving wellbeing for all children: Where do we stand?

This is the first post in a 3-part series by Sharon Bessell (@BessellSharon) and Cadhla O’Sullivan (@CadhlaOSull) from the Children’s Policy Centre at ANU. Today they identify some trends from their analysis of poverty and wellbeing.

Policy and governancePower to Persuade15 July 2024Children, wellbeing, Poverty

Holiday reading from Power to Persuade

Creating using evidence, Advocacy, Policy and governancePower to Persuade19 December 2023Policy making, Poverty, gender

Raising children in the lucky country: Understanding the income penalty and poverty at childbirth

For Anti-Poverty Week 2023, Dr Ana Gamarra Rondinel [@AnaGamarraRondi] Melbourne Institute: Applied Economic & Social Research [@MelbInstUOM] and Life Course Centre (@lifecourseAust) and Dr Anna Price The University of Melbourne [@UniMelb] and Centre for Community Child Health, Murdoch Children's Research Institute [@MCRI_for_kids] explore the interplay between first time parenthood, financial security, and early child development.

Womens Policy Action TankLife Course Centre12 October 2023Children, employment, Poverty, Gender Inequity, gender pay gap

Why Housing is Key to Understanding, and Alleviating(!), Poverty

Ensuring all Australians have a safe, secure and affordable home is an important focus of Anti-Poverty Week 2023 (15-27 October). Here, Professor Stephen Whelan from the University of Sydney School of Economics (@USydneyEcon) and Life Course Centre (@lifecourseAust) examines the current state-of-play in Australia’s housing market, its influence on experiences of poverty, and what can be done to improve the future health, welfare and dignity of all Australians.

Policy and governanceLife Course Centre11 October 2023housing and homelessness, Poverty

Single parents and post-separation families: Challenges and opportunities in times of crisis

This year Anti-Poverty Week 2023 (15-27 October) is continuing and extending its campaign to end child poverty in Australia. To achieve this requires a strong focus on supporting families of all kinds. In today’s post Dr Alice Campbell (@ColtonCambo] of Life Course Centre (@lifecourseAust) examines the challenges and opportunities in supporting single parenting, co-parenting and post-separation families.

What are Foodbank prices really like?

Advocacy, Lived experience, Finance and economicsPower to Persuade3 October 2023Poverty

Understanding the Feelings of Poverty: Shame, Anger, and Hope

Being poor isn't just about lacking material resources; it's also an emotional experience involving shame, anger and hope, explain Rose-Marie Stambe and Cameron Parsell from the UQ School of Social Science.

IssuesPower to Persuade29 September 2023Poverty, welfare conditionality, welfare reform

Alone Australian or collaboration for the nation we want?

Dr Millie Rooney, co-director of Australia Remade and long-time contributor here at Power to Persuade, has had some great ideas for new reality TV shows, following the success of ‘Alone Australia’. The question is - do we have contestants going it alone to survive, or a team effort to re-imagine a way for everyone to thrive?

If it walks and talks like credit: behind the regulation of Buy Now Pay Later

In today’s post, Emma O’Neill of Good Shepherd (@GoodShepANZ) explores the potential impacts of the Government’s proposed regulation of Buy Now, Pay Later Products. Emma is a Senior Policy & Advocacy Advisor with a particular interest in women’s economic security, gender and climate change, and the impacts of marketisation on social equity.

Stretching ourselves beyond reason to deliver government savings: a response to the Albanese’s first budget – part 3

In the wake of the budget, the Antipoverty Centre asked people on Centrelink payments – the real social policy experts – for their reactions. A contributor shared how he and other carers performing unpaid labour save the government money, and another describes the devastating impact of the failure to raise the JobSeeker rate on welfare recipients.

In Anti-Poverty Week here are 5 big ideas for Australia to halve child poverty by 2030

This year, Anti-Poverty Week @AntiPovertyWeek (16-22 October 2022) is calling on Australia to legislate a plan to halve child poverty by 2030 to meet our commitments to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. Here, Life Course Centre @lifecourseAust researchers present 5 big ideas to help make this happen.

Womens Policy Action TankLife Course Centre20 October 2022Children, Poverty, policy problem, Policy Research

Improving Census data on Australia’s diversity will help to better identify and address poverty

The Australian Government recognises the current Census questions on cultural, ethnic and racial identity are inadequate. So what might better Census questions look like? And how would more comprehensive data on Australia’s ethnoracial diversity help to better address underlying social and economic inequalities? In Anti-Poverty Week (@AntiPovertyWeek), Life Course Centre (@lifecourseAust) researcher and sociologist Dr Rennie Lee (@Rennie_Lee) at The University of Queensland, and colleague Professor Farida Fozdar, sociologist at Curtin University, examine this important data collection issue that is vital for government policymaking.

Creating using evidenceLife Course Centre19 October 2022Poverty, government, migrants

If we want Australian children to grow up free from poverty, we must support those raising them – especially sole parents

This year marks the 20th year of Australia dedicating a week to act on poverty and Anti-Poverty Week 2022, 16-22 October (@AntiPovertyWeek) is calling on our Parliamentarians to legislate a plan to halve child poverty in Australia by 2030. To achieve real change, Life Course Centre (@lifecourseAust) researchers Dr Alice Campbell (@ColtonCambo) and Professor Janeen Baxter (@JaneenBaxter7) highlight the prevalence of single parent families in poverty and the need for targeted supports.

Womens Policy Action TankLife Course Centre18 October 2022Poverty, Single mothers, Children, family violence

Break the Poverty Machine: the voices of Australia’s poor (part 2)

Aeryn Brown is a JobSeeker recipient from Tasmania. They authored the below open letter to social security minister Amanda Rishworth as part of the Break the Poverty Machine week of action, which will be held to mark the International Day to Eradicate Poverty on 17 October – one week ahead of the federal budget. People on low incomes and supporters can get more information and register to participate in the #BTPM protest (either online or in person in Adelaide) here: btpm2022.eventbrite.com.au

Break the Poverty Machine: the voices of Australia’s poor (part 1)

Marina is one of nearly 900 000 Australians who are either unemployed or underemployed and who receive either Jobseeker Payment or Youth Allowance. This open letter is to Amanda Rishworth, Minister for Social Services in preparation for an upcoming “raise the rate” protest hosted by the Anti-Poverty Centre and the Australian Unemployed Workers’ Union on International Day for the Eradication of Poverty.

Reducing poverty and improving wellbeing: Children’s role in transformational thinking

Children and young people continue to be sidelined in policy making, even as calls grow for their views and experience to be included. Sharon Bessel, director of the Children’s Policy Centre, and of the Poverty and Inequality Research Centre at the ANU, takes us through how children should be central to the move to a wellbeing budget and addressing poverty.

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