Poverty Themed Living Well School Newsletter

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Poverty Themed Living Well School Newsletter

Article 1: LifeSavers Financial Education Free Resources

Article 2: Nonuniform Days from a Poverty Point of View

Article 3: Zarach The Children's Bed Chairty

Article 4: Stop Loan Sharks

Article 5: Breakfast Club Provision

Article 6: Signpost families to support

Article 7: Quick news links - World Book Day, Buttle Uk Grant, Saif Space Case Study, Empathy Week, Taste Ed, Support Students this Ramadan and Free Theatre Performance

LifeSavers Financial Education Free Resources

The LifeSavers programme is a free financial education initiative available for state-funded primary schools.

LifeSavers provides free training and resources that equip teachers to deliver money lessons that help reinforce positive attitudes and behaviours towards money from a young age. Research shows that habits and attitudes around money are formed before the age of 7. LifeSavers classroom resources also fit well within the PSHE, Maths, and Citizenship curriculum.

What’s available?

5 Big Questions about money – whole school resources, lesson activities and assembly plans to promote meaningful conversations about money.
Milo’s money – a beautifully illustrated storybook complete with Milo the Dino soft toy. Supplementary resources are available for EYFS and KS1.

Get involved! If you’d like to get involved in the LifeSavers programme or find out more, please do get in touch (Sarah.Barlow@jff.org.uk) or book a 15 minute intro meeting.

Click Here

Nonuniform Days from a Poverty Point of View

Children from poorer families often experience shame and anxiety on fundraising days due to barriers to participation.

In March, we have Red Nose Day, a charity event many schools choose to fundraise for, and World Book Day, where children are often asked to dress up as their favourite book. These days can unintentionally highlight children who face poverty.

Read our charity and fundraising toolkit to learn what changes your school could make to allow all children to participate in activities. The toolkits were designed in response to audits that were delivered by Children North East in local Bradford schools.

This toolkit is one of many that offer guidance to remove poverty as a barrier to elements of the school day.

Click Here

Zarach The Children's Bed Chairty

**More than 1 million parents in the UK* give up their beds so that their children have somewhere warm and comfortable to sleep.**

Zarach, the children’s bed charity, started delivering bed bundles in Bradford in December 2023. Each child referred to them via a school received a new bed and mattress, duvet, pillow, bed sheets, and cosy pyjamas.

A good night’s sleep is beneficial for everyone, but especially for children who are developing physically and building the foundations of their education. Zarach wants to make sure that every child in Bradford has the opportunity to succeed at school.

If you know one of those parents, Zarach can help. Schools' pastoral teams can make a referral for families. Zarach will then arrange a home visit to see how they can support and organise the delivery of beds.

Zarach believes every child in the country deserves a safe, warm place to rest their head each night, waking up energised and ready to learn.

Click For More Info

Stop Loan Sharks

The cost of living crisis means people are more likely to borrow informally from someone in their local community, workplace, or online.

This borrowing is almost always offered with the intention of coercing the borrower into handing over as much money as possible for as long as possible. Anyone lending money to two or more people as a business (i.e., charging “interest”) without the correct permission to lend is committing a crime. Bradford and District Credit Union however, provide banking services, safe savings and loans.

Stop Loan Sharks is a government funded national Trading Standards team with embedded police officers, they investigate and prosecute Loan Sharks (often, they are called other names in different communities).

Stop Loan Sharks take the safety and wellbeing of those who have borrowed extremely seriously and can offer tailored support to people who contact them. Information can be passed on anonymously, and many people keep their situation a secret from even those closest to them. They would be delighted to talk to you informally if you have any concerns or questions or if a family at your school needs support.

In addition, they have resources and contact details on our website and socials.

Click Here

Breakfast Club Provision

Breakfast clubs help ensure all children start the school day equally, with a nutritious breakfast, energised and ready to learn, which can improve behaviour, attendance and attainment.

Of the 648 schools that completed the Magic Breakfast survey, responses showed a continued rise in hunger and poverty. 71% surveyed said that child hunger had increased in their school community in the past year, 75% believed that child poverty had risen, and a staggering 80% of schools cited the cost-of-living crisis as the primary driver.

Schools are increasingly becoming more than just a place for learning and now function as multifaceted support for wider families. 57% of schools cite an increase in uniform offerings, hygiene products, food banks, and fuel vouchers.

Against a difficult background, Magic Breakfast continues to hear how breakfast provision positively impacts a range of outcome areas, such as boosting children’s reading, writing, and maths by an average of two months. Other impacts observed also included strengthened parental engagement and access to work opportunities, strengthened staff-student relationships and reduced stigma.

Link for further information:

Magic Breakfast's Measuring and Monitoring survey summary 2023/24

Breakfast Provision - Living Well Schools

A Yorkshire Based Review by FixOurFood

Signpost families to support

In the Big Question Survey 2023 71% of schools surveyed said they believed the cost of living is impacting children’s learning.

Poverty can be a barrier to education leading to lower attendance, early identification and support can reduce the impact on attendance. There are two useful website that you can signpost Bradfrod families in that show a range of support avaible.