The Impact of the Scottish Child Payment on the Need for Food Banks

The Scottish Government introduced the Scottish Child Payment (SCP) in February 2021 as part of efforts to meet Scotland’s child poverty targets. The benefit was initially available for children under 6 at £10 per week, per child. It rolled out to all children under 16 in qualifying households at £25 per week, per child in November 2022. SCP is also a key part of the current Scottish Government strategy to end the need for food banks in Scotland. Better support from the social security system has been cited by the Trussell Trust as an important lever for reducing the need for food banks across the UK, with SCP given as an example. There has been significant interest in the effects of SCP on poverty and related outcomes from policymakers, third sector organisations and the general public. It is important to understand how effective the benefit has been in reducing child poverty and related detrimental outcomes both to inform further Scottish social policy and to explore policy options for other parts of the UK. This report presents the findings of a preliminary evaluation of the impact of SCP on food bank usage, which is closely tied to levels of deep poverty. By studying this relationship, we provide new evidence on the effects of SCP on outcomes for different types of households.