woman standing next to book shelves

What should people know about poverty?

If you want to learn more about poverty or help raise awareness and knowledge of the issue in your organisation the following table may provide a useful framework for you.

**Understanding Poverty**
Knowledge Required
Concepts		Absolute poverty, relative poverty, material deprivation, persistent poverty, severe poverty
Measurement		Income thresholds (Typical household income of different types of household living in poverty)
Causes		Social, political, economic, individual behaviour
Population		Numbers living in poverty; Composition of population experiencing poverty; Risk rate of living in poverty
Policy		What are the key (i) UK (ii) Scottish (iii) local strategies and policies to tackle poverty

**Understanding How Poverty is Experienced**
Knowledge Required
Cost of living		Cost of key essentials; proportion of income that is expended on essentials
Poverty Premiums		Services that are more expensive to people living in poverty
Respect		Understanding of the ways in which living in poverty can undermine the dignity and self-respect of those who experience it
Language		Understanding of ways of describing poverty that are offensive to those who experience it
Barriers		Knowledge and understanding of the barriers that make it more difficult for those who experience poverty to escape it

**Understanding How the Wider Public Perceive Poverty**
Knowledge Required
Knowledge		Public knowledge of the facts of poverty
Attitudes		Inclination toward people experiencing poverty
Media Image		Dominant media presentation of poverty
Political Message		Key party positions/messages toward poverty