Featured News
New report: The Single Parent Debt Trap
Posted 8 February 2021
New report shows single parents more likely to experience problem debt and to live in persistent poverty. Many forced to go without food to make repayments.
News
Read the latest news on Gingerbread’s work and the issues affecting single parent families today.
Gingerbread calls on the new government to tackle the poverty epidemic among single parent families
Posted 16 December 2019
As the new Conservative government is announced, Gingerbread calls for urgent action to reduce poverty among single parent families through policies that improve living standards for the 1 in 4 UK families headed by single...
Gingerbread responds to reports of past comments from Prime Minister Boris Johnson on children of single parents
Posted 28 November 2019
Reports today have brought to light negative comments made by Prime Minister Boris Johnson about the children of single parents in a column published in 1995. Faye Goldman, Interim Communications and Policy Director at Gingerbread responds:...
Gingerbread welcome SSAC’s call for social security strategy for separated parents
Posted 23 October 2019
Joe Richardson, Research and Policy Officer at Gingerbread, responds: “We welcome the focus of the SSAC’s report, which looks at how to alleviate the financial, emotional and psychological hardships that separated parents and their children can...
Gingerbread supports the Trussell Trust’s #5WeeksTooLong campaign
Posted 19 September 2019
As the Trust continues to urge the Government to end the five week wait for Universal Credit (UC), their latest policy report reveals that the longer the new benefits system has been rolled out in...
Gingerbread responds to new research from StepChange
Posted 18 September 2019
At Gingerbread, we know that debt is a big issue for many single parents. Our helpline team takes lots of calls on money issues and we regularly hear of the wide-reaching effects of debt on...
Gingerbread responds to Budget 2018
Posted 29 October 2018
Responding to today’s Budget, Rosie Ferguson, CEO of Gingerbread said: “Single parents like Mischa, Lisa and Elaine are starting to be heard. Gingerbread welcomes the investment into the work allowance and protection for people moving to Universal...
Gingerbread receives cross-party commendation at PMQs
Posted 27 September 2018
We were glad to hear both the Prime Minister and Leader of the Opposition recognising our “excellent service” at Prime Minister’s Questions earlier in September. It’s not every week that the Prime Minister and Leader of...
Government U-turn on child maintenance avoidance is “welcome but not enough”
Posted 12 July 2018
The government’s new child maintenance strategy shows it is listening to the concerns raised by Gingerbread and single parents,[1] but still leaves question marks as to whether the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) is fit for...Notes [1] Gingerbread’s response to the DWP’s consultation. [2] Child maintenance avoidance describes when a paying parent minimises their declared income, which is used to calculate maintenance owed, thereby paying far less than they can afford. [3] Parents...
Benefit cap court judgment means “more misery” for single parents with babies and toddlers
Posted 15 March 2018
Today, the Court of Appeal ruled in favour of the government concluding that the benefit cap is not discriminating against single parents with children aged under two.[1] Laura Dewar, Policy Officer at Gingerbread, comments: “Gingerbread is bitterly...
Budget announcements on Universal Credit welcome but not enough to make work pay
Posted 22 November 2017
The Government’s second budget of the year has made welcome and long-needed changes. But it has failed to reverse harsh cuts that are falling on the very families it has promised to support. Responding to the...