A survey of the attitudes and perceptions of poverty among the general public, conducted by Ipsos MORI for Church Urban Fund - Summary of Findings

The general public in England associate various social problems and issues with poverty in Britain, but particularly health-related conditions such as drug and alcohol dependency, housing-related problems and low income. The research findings indicate a broad understanding among the general public of social problems which might contribute to poverty in this country.

Those who are inclined to think that poor people are in some way culpable for their poverty are less likely to associate housing-related problems and low income with poverty, and more likely to think of problems that might be perceived to be more self–induced such as drug dependency and alcoholism.

There is a wide acceptance of the existence of poverty in Britain, although older people (over 64), who are likely to be pensioners and, arguably, more likely to be vulnerable to poverty, are more inclined than others to feel that poor people are to blame for their poverty. They are also more likely to think that there is no poverty in Great Britain.

Associations with Poverty

The social problems and issues most associated with poverty are drug abuse/taking (21%), homelessness (21%) and low income (20%). The table below indicates a broad understanding among the general public of social problems which might contribute to poverty in this country.

Top 8 social problems and issues associated with Poverty
Drug abuse/drug taking	21%
Homelessness	21%
Low income	20%
Housing difficulties/poor housing	15%
Bad health/poor nutrition	14%
Lack of opportunities	12%
Alcohol/alcoholism	11%
Crime	10%

Those who believe that ‘poor people only have themselves to blame’ are less likely than others to associate homelessness (11%, compared to 21% overall), low income (11%, compared to 20% overall) and housing difficulties (6%, compared to 15% overall) with poverty in Britain, but are as likely to associate problems such as drug abuse and alcoholism with poverty.

Tackling Poverty

When shown a list of possible agencies who may tackle poverty nationally and locally in Britain, survey participants are most likely to say that Charities and non-governmental organisations are doing the most to tackle poverty (64%). One in ten people (11%) say that Religious leaders are doing the most.

Q. Looking at this list, which one or two, if any, do you think is doing the most to tackle poverty in Britain?
Charities/NGOs	64%
Central Government	28%
Local government	17%
Religious leaders	11%
Business and industry	6%
There is no poverty in Britain	1%
None of these/don't know	11%

Men are more likely than women to say that Central government is doing the most to tackle poverty in Britain (32% and 25% respectively). People in the AB social classes are more likely than those in the DE social classes to say that Charities/NGOs (70% and 57% respectively) and Central government (37% and 26% respectively) are doing most to tackle poverty.

People aged over 64 are less likely than all other age groups to say that Charities/non-governmental organisations are doing the most (51%, compared to 64% overall).

Perceptions of Poverty in Britain

Half (50%) the general public say they do not know what the current official poverty line is, in terms of pounds after tax in income per person, per week. However, around a third (35%) speculated fairly accurately that the figure is between £50-£149. For a single adult the figure is around £100 per week

Q. As far as you know, what is the current official poverty line, in terms of pounds after tax in income per person, per week?
Under £50	6%
£50-£99	21%
£100-£149	14%
£150-£199	6%
£200-£249	2%
£250+	0%
Don't know	50%

Two in five (42%) say that their level of income is far above what they estimated the poverty line to be. A quarter (27%) say that their income is slightly above what they think the povrty line is, and a small but noteworthy proportion (12%) say their income is that level or below.

Q. Looking at this card, how far above or below that level of income would you say your household is?
Far above that level of income	42%
Slightly above	27%
At that level	6%
Slightly below	4%
Far below that level of income	2%
Refused	1%
Don't know	17%

Londoners are more likely than people verall to say they are living below what they estimate the poverty line to be (12% compared to 6% respectively).

The vast majority (87%) of the general public disagree that 'there is no such ting as poverty in Britain'. Three-quarters (77%) disagree that 'poor people only have themselves to blame' and three in five (63%) agree that 'people who are poor tend to go unnoticed'.

Q. I'm going to read out some statements, and for each one I owuld like you to tell me how strongly you agree or disagree with each.
	% Disagree	% Agree
There is no such thing as poverty in Britain	87%	8%
Poor people only have themselves to blame	77%	10%
People who are poor tend to go unnoticed	23%	63%

People over 64 are more likely than people overall to agree that 'there is no poverty in Britain' (16% compared to 8% respectively), and that 'poor people only have themselves to blame' (17% compared to 10% respectively).

People in social classes Dand E (13%), who are more likely to be living in poverty, are also more likely than those in the A and B social classes (8%) to agree that 'poor people only have themselves to blame'.

Those who agree that 'there is no poverty in Britain' are more likely than those who disagree, that 'poor people only have themselves to blame' (40% compared to 7% respectively).

Understanding attitudes to poverty in the UK: getting the public’s attention - Sarah Castell, Julian Thompson - Joseph Rowntree Foundation. According to Castell and Thompson, "the public are currently a long way from supporting an anti-UK-poverty agenda. They are not aware of the problem and do not believe that it is a legitimate issue." Reasons include "The public believe that the social contract is growing weaker, and that social relations within society are breaking down due to antisocial behaviour; the real problem is seen as ‘emotional’ poverty, not lack of physical or concrete resources." This valuable research examines factors that discourage people from supporting the anti-poverty agenda in the UK. The report uses simple models to illustrate why some attempts to communicate more effectively have had limited success.  It also explores the value of some creative themes developed by the project team, to influence the debate and provide ideas for future communications.

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