The rising cost of living over the past few years has pushed many Plymouth families into financial hardship. Limitations of the benefits system mean that large families often struggle to afford essentials for their children. As a result, many are increasingly reliant on emergency charitable support, such as foodbanks and the Household Support Fund, to fill the gap in their household budgets. 

To better understand the impact of this situation, we set out to explore how local families with multiple children affected by the Two Child Limit policy are coping. Using Get Involved Awards funding, our research with the University of Plymouth focused on how these families manage their family budgets and how the policy affects long-term outcomes for children, including isolation and mental and physical health.

“…I was used to getting weekly money and then I go and do like my weekly shops. But with my monthly money I can’t go out and do a whole month’s shop because I haven’t got the freezer capacity to do it. So, I have to just fill up as much as I can and then think what I need. And then I just pop into the local shop and then buying the daily food … And then that’s obviously more money. And then when I’m due with my second shop, I’ve got like nothing left.”

Why research the impact of the policy in Plymouth?

In the 8 years since the policy was introduced, it has affected millions of children across the country. In Plymouth alone, the latest DWP statistics show that 1,750 households are not receiving the child element of Universal Credit for at least one child, impacting a total of 2,230 children in the city. 150 additional families are now affected since we began our research last year, and these numbers will only continue to grow as the policy remains in place.

This is concerning when we consider that, in addition to the cost-of-living pressures affecting households across the country, Plymouth faces consistently high rates of deprivation and poverty.

“… We haven’t put the heating on. Even when we had a little bit of money, you can’t do that. It’s so expensive it’s ridiculous.”

Key findings from our research

• In 2024, 58% (1,600) Plymouth families didn’t receive a child element/amount for at least one child – resulting in a loss of £3,455 each year in Universal Credit for each child subject to the policy.
• In 2021, ONS data shows that nearly 10,000 children in Plymouth were living in low-income families – despite most of these families (70%) being in paid work
• 2,214 Plymouth households who contacted Citizens Advice from April – December 2024 were in financial crisis – up 13% from same period in 2023.
• All of the local parents we spoke to were in debt, and 5 out of 8 had used a Foodbank.
• 6 out of 8 parents we interviewed reported one or more household member with a health condition or disability, with caring responsibilities creating a barrier to working.
• The policy creates further hardship for larger families who are navigating life events beyond their control, like health changes, that lead to them needing welfare support.

“Can you imagine how much food eight kids eat?  It’s just such a lot. Even though I went to a foodbank, and they have given me lots of things … we just need to get used to this… It’s my fault.”

In addition, we uncovered that the impacts of the policy extend beyond the financial, affecting the mental health and wellbeing and ability to participate fully in society for all members of the family.

Click on the link at the bottom of the page to read the full report, including our recommendations for decision-makers to address the effects of the policy on a local and national level – developed in collaboration with the local community.

“… if you’ve got three children in a family, how fair is it say to say that one child doesn’t deserve the same opportunities and the same as what the other children deserve. Just because parents are on benefits, just because the parents can’t go to work. And even when you do try to and to work, the jobs aren’t there. They’re not there in the school hours – you can’t get school hour ones where you can just drop it and say ‘by the way I’ve got to pick up the kid’ or ‘by the way my partner’s just fallen down, I’m a carer can I got sort him out’ . You can’t get those jobs, they’re just not there. So you can’t get – you can’t better yourself anyway – even when you go to college and do online courses – which I have done, as well – to try and better yourself. It’s pointless, because you’re only bettering your person and you can’t actually do anything with it.”

Project timeline

Thank you to everyone who helped us with our research!
Click on the button below to read our report and discover what we learned.