2021 story
This page tells the story of London Challenge Poverty Week 2021.Showing just a flavour of the activities, campaigns and work from brilliant, London-based organisations and groups – all raising their voice for a #PovertyFreeLondon in October 2021.
Highlights
Click each image to view highlights
Online Art Exhibition – Solace Women’s Aid
Women and children from refugees in London have created artwork on the theme of ‘Living in London’.
Barking and Dagenham Youth Dance
A thought-provoking dance by young people, the piece of work encapsulates the thoughts and perceptions of young people growing up in a city with high levels of poverty.
Food Growing Workshops – Lewisham Local
Lewisham Local and partners hosted a range of free activities related to food access and growing across Lewisham. All the activities provide a free lunch and are aimed at families who are on a low-income.
Bitesize Podcasts – St Michael’s Fellowship
In these new bitesize podcasts from St Michael’s Fellowship, the team share some of their stories and insights into how poverty affects the parents they are working with.
Money Saving Workshops – Bromley By Bow
In these new bitesize podcasts from St Michael’s Fellowship, the team share some of their stories and insights into how poverty affects the parents they are working with.
Cooking Workshop – HomeStart Ealing
Homestart Ealing provided some of their families with fresh ingredients, a recipe card and came together on Zoom to cook. Enabling low income families to use fresh produce which they may not otherwise have the opportunity to do.
Webinar: London Council Solutions To Poverty – 4in10
This webinar brought together London borough councillors and officers to learn about & share good practice to tackle poverty. Chaired by Cllr. Muhammed Butt, speakers included: Cllr Alice Macdonald, Cllr Damian White and Ellie Kershaw.
Webinar: A Healthy Start For Londoners – Sustain
Sustain hosted a workshop with public health teams, food partnerships, local authorities and others to explore best practice in promoting the Healthy Start voucher scheme and what else can be done to increase uptake in London.
Poems To Challenge Poverty – ATD 4th World
For the UN International Day to End Poverty in 2020, on 15 October, this event featured 18 people living in poverty who had each written their own poems about living in poverty. Listen to the poems.
Webinar: Commission on Social Security
The Commission on Social Security offered a preview of their proposals for a better social security system. A White Paper style document with Commission’s final proposals will be launched in early 2022.
Webinar: Resources For Autism & 4in10
Resources For Autism and 4in10 gathered parents of disabled children and relevant organisations to discuss issues and solutions to the cost of raising a disabled child. Watch the full webinar.
Free Bike Repairs – Broad Bikez
A bike can be a great, free way to travel in an expensive city. However, repairing it can be expensive. That’s why Broad Bikez offered Londoners the opportunity to get their bike repaired for free and learn how to self-repair it moving forward!
Banquet and Recipe Boxes – BriteBox & Voices of Hope
Britebox and Voices of Hope hosted a variety of activities including a banquet for low-income families and continued to deliver their recipe boxes. Their events also featured on BBC London News!
Research & Campaigns
‘Flying Against Gravity’ Research – 4in10
A report, commissioned by 4in10 and the GLA, highlights the reality of poverty in London in 2021 and most importantly, the desire of Londoners to change this.
New Borough Poverty Data – Trust For London
Trust for London released and discussed new poverty data broken down at borough level, revealing the inequalities and different challenges facing each borough.
London Calling: Stretched Too Far Report – CPAG
Child Poverty Action Group launched a new report on the views and experiences of parents and young people in the capital during the first year of the London Calling project. It looks at the key barriers to a good quality of life for children and families living on a low income in London in 2021.
Community Awareness Campaign – Bin Knives, Save Lives
Bin Lives Save Lives ran an awareness campaign on the link between knife violence and poverty in the community. The local MP, Sam Terry (Ilford), came and supported the campaign and project.
Mentoring Scheme – ADANNA Women’s Support Group
ADANNA Women’s Support Group set up a new mentoring programme: ‘Women to Women Mentoring’ to help women to enhance their skills and be able to further advance in their careers or to re-start their careers.
Infographic Campaign – Gingerbread
Single-parents have faced an incredibly challenging few years. With childcare centres closing, the price of childcare rising, Universal Credit being cut, and the cost of living rising – Gingerbread brought attention to challenges and injustices faced by single parents in 2021.
Virtual Protest – South London Refugee Association
SLRA have created their very own ‘virtual’ protest, taking their message to a different central London location each day during London Challenge Poverty Week.
Blogs and Reflections
Blog – Shelter London
This blog from Shelter London takes an in-depth look at why the housing emergency in London is so pronounced and what can still be done to help.
Blog – Trust For London
With so much talk of ‘levelling up’, in this blog Manny Hothi, Chief Executive of Trust for London, explores what ‘levelling up’ really means for our city, & how low-income Londoners shouldn’t be left behind.
Blog – Little Village
Sophie Livingstone MBE, Chief Executive, Little Village puts pen to paper on the shocking developments in Afghanistan and how Little Village supported refugee families and children in London.
Blog – Little Village
Sophia Moreau, Head of Advocacy and Communications at Little Village discusses the various pathways to parents being pulled into poverty and how Little Village seek to prevent those pathways.
Blog – Age UK London
Maureen Childs writes about the increasing number of older people faced with a choice between eating and data and efforts to end data poverty.
Blog – Work Rights Centre
Emma McClelland, from the Works Rights Centre explains the impact that precarious work has, predominantly on women and migrant workers.
Blog – Be Enriched
Be Enriched’s Founder and CEO Kemi Akinola sets out the work the organisation does to address food poverty in South London-based, using food to bring joy and connection to the socially excluded, develop skills in young people, build communities and grow future generations.
For more thoughts and ideas about how to get involved and how to access support and resources check our our Get Involved Guide 2024.
And most importantly of all, if you are planning an event or activity then let us know about it so that we can include it in our communications about the week.
Join us!
If you would like to get involved in London Challenge Poverty Week, please use this form to provide us with your details so that we can stay in touch with you.
