How Fife families are being helped by payment to reduce child poverty
The families of 24,130 children across Fife are benefiting from Scottish Child Payment - according to the latest figures.
The payment is only available in Scotland, and has already proven to help reduce child poverty.
Scottish Child Payment provides families with £27.15 a week, rising to £28.20 from April 2026, for every eligible child under 16. It can help with buying essentials such as food and clothing as well as activities to support children’s health and wellbeing.
An increase to £40 a week for children under one will be introduced during 2027/28. This boost is estimated to benefit around 12,000 children across Scotland and could be worth an extra £500 a year for each eligible child.
,Fife MSP, Shirley-Anne Somerville, who is also Justice Secretary, said: “Scottish Child Payment forms part of the best cost-of-living support package in the UK. It has helped ease the pressure on thousands of family budgets and is playing a key role in ensuring Scotland is the only part of the UK to see relative poverty rates fall.
“It, and our other family payments, could be worth around £25,000 by a child’s 16th birthday — compared with less than £2,000 in England and Wales, where support ends at age four.
“Our package of family support demonstrates our ongoing commitment to eradicating child poverty and providing children in Scotland with the best start in life.”
Campaigner and mum of two girls, Angie Bird, spoke of her own experience receiving Scottish Child Payment.
She said: “As a single parent, it is making a real difference to my family. It means I can afford opportunities that would otherwise be a struggle to pay for, like gymnastics for my youngest, and the local water sports for my eldest daughter. The skills my children are gaining from these activities are helping to broaden their horizons beyond our day-to-day life to give them the chance they deserve.
“What I value most is that the financial support gives families like mine the opportunity to choose what will benefit our children, rather than being limited to a set list of services — it’s a boost that helps us remove financial obstacles to make our lives better.”