How Christian parents can respond to family poverty

In a season of financial stress, it’s easy to focus on programmes, but Jenney Hererra from Acts 435 suggests that true gospel love means listening to real needs and showing up for neighbours, just like Jesus did

As we move into the summer of 2026, there are still countless families who are having to make impossible financial decisions just to make ends meet. The latest figures from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation show that 4.5 million children are in poverty. Even with the two-child benefit cap being lifted, only 450,000 children will benefit, leaving over 4 million still experiencing poverty. One in 10 UK households are now skipping meals and one in seven are going without some foods. Financial pressures remain with us - exacerbated by ongoing global conflict, and turbulent financial markets.

This isn’t a far-away problem - this is the reality for so many around us

This isn’t a far-away problem - this is the reality for so many around us. It may be members of our own families, neighbours on our streets, those sitting next to us in the pews, or parents and carers joining a church’s toddler group. Even though times are hard, and for many it feels like it’s a growing concern to make it through to the next paycheck, there are practical, solution-orientated steps we can all take to support; ourselves, our children, our churches, and our communities, even in the midst of so much uncertainty.

For many of the individuals and families we work with at Acts 435, we have seen time and again that even where there is careful stewardship of income, it is the sudden, unexpected costs that ……