‘The first duty of any government is to keep its people safe’
The message of needing to ‘keep its people safe’ is clear in yesterday’s Spending Review, where defence and security were given prominent place.
A rise in defence spending to 2.6% of GDP by 2027, and increased funding for UK intelligence services, were framed as necessary investments in an uncertain world. These are serious commitments. But is this ‘safe bet’ a good one?
Safety, for most people, does not start at the border or on a battlefield. These are vital, but only one part of the narrative. For millions of children and families, safety starts in the home. In a warm classroom. In knowing that there is food on the table and support available when things go wrong or become uncertain. A secure country is not one that only invests in intelligence and surveillance, it is one that understands and tackles the persistent and complex inequalities that leave too many families one bill away from crisis.
While the recent Spending Review contains some welcome steps forward, it also presents more questions for those with less.
Poverty won’t pause for fiscal caution
The government’s long-awaited confirmation of a national child poverty strategy is still… well, awaited. Like my regular train commutes to London from the North East, I am questioning when exactly it will come and to what extent it will deliver what is needed for the journey ahead.
But this week’s announcements did confirm funding for two long-standing asks from the North East Child Poverty Commission: expanding free school meals to all children in families receiving Universal Credit, and a better-resourced system of locally delivered crisis support.
Beth Farhat, Chair of the North East Child Poverty Commission, welcomed these steps but also made the stakes clear. You can read her full statement here.
“The Government must also address the reasons why so many families, both in and out of work, have to turn to crisis support in the first place. Far too many simply do not have enough money for the essentials because our national safety net is broken and requires urgent investment.”
This broken safety net is why many children are pulled into poverty every day under the two-child limit, described by Child Poverty Action Group as ‘the biggest driver of rising child poverty.’
As Chief Executive Alison Garnham puts it:
“National renewal doesn’t start with record child poverty.”
These words should be on the desk of every policymaker working on the Autumn Budget and in the sights of all those working on the national poverty strategy. Poverty will not pause for fiscal caution or safe bets.
The cost of learning
An additional £4.7 billion has been pledged for schools, alongside £2.4 billion annually for rebuilding and maintenance, and £132.5 million from dormant assets for enrichment.
This headline increase of £4.7 billion for schools sounds encouraging. But when rising costs are accounted for, the actual real-terms increase in per-pupil funding averages just 1.1% annually, or 0.9% excluding the ringfenced Free School Meals expansion. So in real ‘school’ world terms, this is not so much a boost as it is a cushion. The Institute for Fiscal Studies has noted that this leaves schools with “very little headroom.” Given the pressures of growing SEND needs, unsafe buildings, and a stretch workforce, the impact of this funding is still to be seen.
We should applaud the fact that there is funding for school-based nurseries, breakfast clubs, and a modest real-terms increase in the Department for Education budget overall, but its admin budget is set to fall by 15%.
Education reform without resource is too familiar and uncomfortable a tune for many school leaders, especially those serving areas of significant disadvantage. Only last week, Teach First published their ‘Breaking the Cycle’ report. It explores how schools are responding to the challenges of child poverty and what systemic changes are needed to support these efforts. Amongst various findings, the report highlights that:
Schools are overextending themselves: Staff are working beyond capacity to support disadvantaged pupils through academic and pastoral interventions, but without broader support, these efforts risk being unsustainable.
Funding matters: Targeted funding, particularly pupil premium, is effective when used strategically, improving attendance, attainment, and wellbeing.
Teacher shortages hinder progress: Recruitment and retention, especially in disadvantaged areas, remain major barriers; quality teaching is still seen as key lever for change.
Poverty-related barriers extend beyond school: Issues like food insecurity, housing instability, and mental health needs are frequently presenting at schools, which struggle to fill the gap left by under-resourced public services
(Source: Teach First, 2025)
Personally, it would be good to see these issues at the core of fiscal statements and dialogue about funding through government. But, there are additional investments that arguably invite some optimism. The Spending Review promises:
£2.4 billion annually until 2034-35 for the school rebuilding programme
£400 million per year for school maintenance
£2.6 billion for additional school places (based on future demand)
£370 million for school-based nurseries
£132.5 million from dormant assets to support libraries and enrichment
It is worth noting that some of these numbers mask wider risks. No target has been set for how many schools will benefit from the rebuilding fund, many of which face serious structural issues after years of underinvestment. Although £760 million is being pledged for SEND reforms, most of this was already pre-announced, and crucially, rising local authority SEND deficits are not addressed at all.
Meanwhile, the Labour pledge to recruit 6,500 specialist teachers received barely a mention in funding terms. The risk is that rhetoric races ahead of resource.
The cost of hardship
Some elements of the Spending Review may bring more to households with less. The £3 bus fare cap is extended to 2027, Winter Fuel Payments have been restored for pensioners earning under £35,000, and the Sizewell C nuclear project is being backed with £14.2 billion, funded by a £1/month charge on energy bills, which ministers believe will bring down prices long-term.
But the expansion of local services, from youth centres to libraries, will lean heavily on councils raising council tax, meaning families could end up paying more to access basic support. Put simply, those with far less do not have more to access this support. And this does not only apply to money, or lack of it, in pockets. Those facing complex and persistent hardship are being driven further into inequality by the grip of hardship.
Poverty, especially persistent poverty, is not simply a matter of money. If you need further evidence of this, explore the latest report to land from UNICEF entitled ‘Held Back from the Start’. It shows that across England, young children who live in areas with higher levels of deprivation have poorer outcomes across a range of health and developmental measures. Where babies and children grow up has a significant impact on their early outcomes. Every Local Authority in the top 20% for deprivation is also in the bottom 20% for multiple measures of child health and development. The most deprived Local Authorities are more than twice as far away from meeting the Government target for 75% children to reach a good level of development, than the most affluent areas.
(Source: UNICEF, 2025)
It’s worth also highlighting that major investments in housing, prisons, and transport, while welcome, are unlikely to fully materialise for years.
For far too many, help delayed is help denied.
Persistent policy, hardened hardship…
There is no question that the 2025 Spending Review signals a change in tone.
The Chancellor spoke of breaking from austerity, and some departments, health, education, housing, have seen fiscal increases. But behind the language of renewal sits a more complex narrative; announcements offset by persistent policy choices that harden hardship.
Nowhere is this clearer than in the decision to retain the two-child limit policy. Some sources claim that the two-child limit on universal credit and child tax credits puts one child into poverty every 13 minutes. No matter how much is invested in free school meals, crisis support, or enrichment, this single policy will continue to harden hardship, unless abolished.
Other persistent policies also need to be addressed.
The Fair Education Alliance (FEA) responded to the Chancellor’s Spring Statement with concern about the deepening pressures facing children, young people, and the organisations that support them. While acknowledging some of the wider benefits and hard work to tackle these, the FEA has publicly called on Government to address persistent policies which we know deepen inequalities. In addition to extending free school meals eligibility to all children whose families are eligible for Universal Credit, the FEA previously called for a national auto-enrolment system for free school meals so no child misses out to due administrative burdens. And, of course, this has been called for loudly by other organisations such as the North East Child Poverty Commission.
As I have argued previously, the North East’s leadership in piloting FSM auto-enrolment shows how proactive, data-driven approaches can make a tangible difference in tackling child poverty. By securing additional funding for schools and ensuring that eligible pupils receive the support they need, these schemes are helping to build capacity for change in systems and across North East communities. Scaling this approach nationally would not only address under-registration but also reinforce the Government’s commitment to reducing child poverty and promoting educational equality.
Unto the breach…
"Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more;"
Henry V, Act 3, Scene 1
Many a time have I used this quote in leadership meetings. While I don’t think colleagues have always appreciated the reference to schools and other settings as battlefields there is something about it that evokes courage and optimism in the face of challenge.
I’m no King Henry, nor do I lead or work alongside troops. But his speech is full of energy and determination as he motivates his troops to charge again through a breach in the walls during the siege of Harfleur.
While our own defence infrastructure expands, so too must our understanding of safety and what we truly want to breach. If we want a secure nation, we must build it with equity, fairness, and investment in the people and places too often left behind.
The true test of this Spending Review will not readily be in the next news headlines. It will be in the lived and living reality of families and whether the promised national renewal reaches those who need it most.
The first duty of government is to keep people safe.
But safety is not just about secure borders or surveillance drones. For families in the UK, particularly in places like the North East, safety means something more personal: being warm, being fed, being able to look after your children. It means knowing the school roof won’t fall in. Knowing your child with disabilities can access the support that they need to have a fair and equitable chance at life.
The government rightly wants to project ambition and security. But real security, especially for children and families facing hardship, requires more than defence spending. It requires tackling the deep, entrenched inequalities that undermine lives every day.
As Janeen Hayat, Director of Collective Action at the Fair Education Alliance says,
‘While this multi-year Spending Review missed many opportunities to prioritise a more equal future for children and families, Government departments can still begin working toward better join-up and collaboration between departments now. Other recommendations, such as free school meal auto-enrolment, a Student Premium, and further development of Family Hubs, are key to making the Opportunity Mission a reality, yet still require significant additional investment. We hope the Government will work with our members to make these a reality’
Janeen Hayat: Fair Education Alliance
The true impact of this Spending Review will not be found in the pages of policy or fiscal analysis. It will be in the day-to-day lives of families facing tough choices and hardening hardship.
And this is why I, and many others, will continue to serve alongside them. To forensically understand that impact and to do something about it. As many times unto the breach as needed.