Why families need help this Christmas
Almost a third of children in the UK live in poverty. 31% of all children.* It’s shocking no matter how many times you hear it. Millions of children live in families that cannot afford at least one of three basic essentials: food, heat, or bills.**
At Family Action, we see this reflected in the services and programmes we deliver every day. And it’s one of the driving forces behind our Toy Appeal. Because when you’re having to make impossible choices about the basics, Christmas can be a heartbreaking time.
This year, we asked over 2,000 parents and carers across the UK about what they would struggle with this year.***
One in six said they wouldn’t be able to afford a present for their children
That means families in every street, every school playground, every community across the country are trying to work out how to give their children Christmas when money is already stretched too thin.
David Holmes CBE, Chief Executive of Family Action, said:
Christmas should be a time of joy, wonder and togetherness for children. Our Toy Appeal helps families facing impossible choices to feel supported and seen. Every donation brings not just a present, but hope, dignity and the reassurance that someone cares.
Our polling
For the last four years we’ve been asking the same questions in our polls and the numbers have been depressingly consistent. This year, we wanted to dig a bit deeper and take the temperature of some of the cities we work in. We can’t count every single family, but we can listen to a representative sample – at least 100 in each location – and understand what that tells us about the wider picture.
This kind of sampling is common in polling and the findings, stark as they are, reflect what we see nationally. For example, in Cardiff, End Child Poverty figures put the number of children living in poverty at 29% (with Cardiff North bringing the average down).****
So when 1 in 5 tell us they can’t afford to buy a present for their own children, that fits in with the official figures and paints a picture of sever financial pressure around Christmas.
Manchester
Birmingham
London
Sheffield
Cardiff
Bristol
Newcastle
Middlesbrough
Norwich
You can’t not get your kids a Christmas present, but there’s a choice between food and presents. We’ve got £10 a week so we can spend £4 at the FOOD club for a bag and then I’ve got a few pounds left to get little bits and bobs. Maybe with the little saving I could buy a little cheap toy.
Thank you
The Family Action Toy Appeal delivers more than toys, it restores dignity, lifts pressure from struggling families and brings joy back to Christmas morning. If you’re considering donating – thank you!
* https://endchildpoverty.org.uk/child-poverty-2025/
** https://www.jrf.org.uk/child-poverty/which-children-experience-severe-and-acute-poverty
***Polling was carried out by Censuswide, among a sample of 2083 UK parents/carers of children under the age of 18. A sample was selected at random from the online panel of 300,000+ adults, with sample selected to give a fair spread of respondents. Quotas were added to reach a minimum of 100 respondents in each of the following regions: North East, North West, Yorkshire and the Humber, East Midlands, West Midlands, East of England, London, South East, South West, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and a minimum of 100 respondents in each of the following cities (live in or closest to): London, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Leeds, Newcastle, Middlesborough, Nottingham, Sheffield, Brighton. The data was collected between 30.07.2025 – 18.08.2025. Censuswide abides by and employs members of the Market Research Society and follows the MRS code of conduct and ESOMAR principles. Censuswide is also a member of the British Polling Council.
