Over the last 12 months, the Wales Centre for Public Policy (WCPP) has been exploring what poverty stigma is, where it comes from, why it matters, what works to address it and, what we at WCPP can do to enable decision makers to access evidence that informs their actions to prevent and address poverty stigma, rather than add to it. Here we share five key insights we've gained so far, and our plans for this work going forwards.

 

1. Poverty stigma affects a significant proportion of the Welsh population, but some groups more than others As our survey with the Bevan Foundation found, a quarter of adults report having experienced received stigma ‘sometimes', ‘often' or ‘always'. These experiences are far more common among younger people, benefits recipients, people who rent their home and people with disabilities. People experiencing food insecurity report three times as much received stigma than those who are not.

2. Poverty stigma is generated through the way we treat each other, as well as through institutions and structures, such as public services, the media and politics.  A majority of the Welsh population (87%) see structural poverty stigma – through the media, politics and public services – at play ‘always', ‘often' or ‘sometimes'. This strongly suggests that poverty stigma is a structural as well as interpersonal issue.

3. Poverty stigma amplifies the effects of material hardship and makes it harder for people to escape poverty. Our policy briefing demonstrates that poverty stigma is associated with poor mental health, social isolation, and reduced take-up of benefits and other support services.

4. There is disparate research evidence and a wealth of practice-based insights about what works to alleviate poverty stigma. We know that key drivers of poverty stigma include stigmatising policy design, bureaucratic and dehumanising services, media and political narratives and social attitude and biases. Evidence on ‘what works' to tackle poverty stigma is still emerging and needs to be brought together.

5. There is an appetite to do something about this. Tackling poverty stigma is already a priority among national and many local governments in Wales, including in Ceredigion and Swansea. Some of the drivers of poverty stigma – especially in terms of the design and delivery of public services – are well within the control of public services, and not necessarily hugely costly to address.

Based on these insights, and following extensive scoping and engagement, we have committed to working with partners to:

1.    Establish a  Poverty Stigma Insight Network. This will provide a space and resource to bring together practitioners, policymakers, researchers and experts-by-experience from across Wales and beyond to share evidence and insights to inform efforts to prevent and address poverty stigma. We will share our own research through the Network, as well as inviting others to share their research, practice and ideas. The Network will also generate ideas for action that we and/or others can take forwards.

2.    Run a programme of place-based work in Swansea, working with Swansea Poverty Truth Commissioners, the Community and Voluntary Service and the Council to bring local evidence, insight and expertise into conversation with international academic research to co-create an evidence-informed strategy to prevent and address poverty stigma locally.

3.    Support and inform the Welsh Government-led Child Poverty Communities of Practice, by feeding evidence and insights from our broader work to inform the key principle of creating ‘kind and compassionate services' which will run throughout all five Communities of Practice and support Objective 4 of the Child Poverty Strategy to ‘address the stigma of poverty'.

4.    Conduct a rapid evidence review. To inform all three strands of work described above, we will work with leading experts at the Poverty Alliance and Scottish Policy and Inequality Research Unit to bring together the best available evidence related to what works to prevent and address poverty stigma.

We will be reflecting on our approach and impact on an ongoing basis with the support of an embedded impact researcher and the support from our ESRC Innovation Fellow who will support us to critically reflect on our approach to involvement.

While many of the key drivers of poverty – particularly macro-economic, fiscal and social security policy - are outside of the control of Welsh local and national government, tackling the stigma of poverty is something that we can all do something about, especially the designers and providers of public and charitable services. And we are heartened that there is so much enthusiasm among public services to work with us and others to achieve a collective impact on this issue to improve the lives of those experiencing material hardship.

Our policy briefing on Tackling Poverty-Related stigma is here. If you would like to find out more or get involved with any of these strands of work, please get in touch with Charlotte Morgan +44 (0)29 287 5345 charlotte.morgan@wcpp.org.uk

 

Amanda Hill-Dixon is senior research fellow, Wales Centre for Public Policy (WCPP)