New Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation analysis reveals that approximately 212,000 children aged 0–15, or 39%, were living in income deprivation in March 2024.
The findings also highlight substantial inequalities in education:
- 53% of secondary pupils in the most deprived areas were persistently absent, compared with 22% in the least deprived areas.
- Blaenau Gwent recorded the highest proportion of children experiencing income deprivation, at 49%.
- Neath Port Talbot had particularly high concentrations of persistent school absenteeism.
- Educational attainment was strongly associated with deprivation.
The statistical release warns that changes in methodology mean direct comparisons with 2019 should be treated cautiously.
Deputy First Minister Sioned Williams has called on the UK Government to ensure that Wales’s proposed Cynnal child payment does not reduce recipients’ entitlement to other benefits.
Why it matters: The figures provide substantial new evidence for decisions on child poverty, education funding, childcare and the targeting of public services. They also raise questions about whether existing interventions are reaching the communities experiencing the greatest disadvantage.
