Grounded: Why no Anti-Poverty Strategy? Online via Zoom

Northern Ireland still has no Anti-poverty strategy despite multiple recommendations from the community and voluntary sector. 

Civil society has long requested the development of an Anti-Poverty Strategy for NI and in recent times the DfC Minister set out a plan to develop 4 Social Strategies through a Co-design process. However, growing political, social and economic challenges, not least, the continued political vacuum at Stormont, have conspired to thwart efforts to move the Anti-poverty strategy forward.

Like the wider Community and Voluntary sector, the Faith sector is also overwhelmed by the cost-of-living crisis, the ongoing pandemic and the crisis in health services, all of which have a direct impact on the complexities and realities of poverty across our communities.

Members of the Department for Communities Anti-Poverty Strategy Co-Design Group have produced a paper that details their key recommendations for development of an Anti-Poverty Strategy for Northern Ireland. This paper has been produced by a range of civil society organisations in their role as members of the Co-Design Group. 

Kathy will take us through the work that has been done to date,  and we will open the discussion about what needs to happen next.