What are the causes of poverty and social break down?

A new study has been launched, which will explore the fundamental causes of poverty and social  breakdown. The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) has identified these as:

• welfare dependency
• family breakdown
• educational failure
• drug and alcohol addiction
• serious personal debt. 

Communication Trust Professional Director Wendy Lee will be part of the working group on educational failure, which will feed into the overall report.  Wendy Lee said: “The research evidencing the poor language of children living in socially  disadvantaged areas is becoming stronger and stronger and we know the massive impact poor language has on educational success, attainment and on long term prospects for children and young people in socially disadvantaged areas. We also know how strong language skills can help children in these areas “buck the trend” and do well in school and beyond. “We are pleased to be able to feed in the issues for these children and some of the evidenced solutions and our optimistic about the impact the report could have on children’s life chances.”  

The CSJ also commissioned a YouGov poll to coincide with the launch of the study aimed at 
identifying the causes of the serious social problems facing Britain. About 55 per cent of people surveyed said at least one of their local communities features broken families, crime and poor schooling.