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Childhood Poverty and Social Exclusion, Tess Ridge, Policy Press, £17.99 ISBN 18861343620   

This volume explores how children (mainly aged 12 and above) from low-income families regard the low standard of living they are forced to endure.

The central chapters draw on research carried out in rural and urban neighbourhoods in and around Bristol. The conclusions are not altogether surprising. Two-thirds of the children receive no pocket money; hence finding forms of paid employment is a major preoccupation.

There is also powerful testimony on the pressure to "fit in" with peers, especially by wearing the right clothes, which creates further financial difficulty.

Friends are highly valued, not only as a source of social validation but also as protection against bullying, which is an ever-present threat among the young people in the study. Some of the most moving reflections are from those young people who see, and try to minimise, the impact of poverty on their parents' lives.


There are plenty of pointers here. The sharp observations of these young citizens on their schooling, on problems in their neighbourhood and on the deficiencies of their leisure opportunities, set an agenda for any practitioner who aspires to tackle family poverty.

John Pierson is senior lecturer, Staffordshire university