A letter in today's Times

Platform 51 is one of the signatories to the following letter that appears in The Times today. The letter outlines the affects the cuts to tax credits will have on families. The letter has also been signed by 4children, Child Poverty Action Group, Citizens Advice, Daycare Trust, Family Action, Gingerbread, Resolution Foundation and TUC.

Dear Chancellor,

Next month working families with two children lose an average of £10.50 per week of help with the cost of their childcare through tax credits. These families are already facing unprecedented pressure from rising prices and stagnating incomes. Recent research shows that pre-school childcare costs rose by 4.8 per cent in the past year. The cuts to tax credits mean the gap between incomes and expenditure will grow still wider for almost 500,000 hard-working families. This is the wrong tax rise at the wrong time for families.

The Welfare Reform Bill, now going through Parliament, has at its heart a desire to ensure that families are better off in work than on benefits. Reducing the support for childcare costs risks undermining this ambition now and in the future. We urge the Chancellor to reconsider the reduction in the Childcare Element of Working Tax Credit planned for April 1 and to use the Budget on March 23 to make an announcement which will be met with relief by families across Britain.

Low pay commission releases 2009 report

The Low Pay Commission is calling for apprentices to receive a national minimum wage in its 2009 report, published last week. However this will be at a lower rate than for other workers.

They have recommended the Government ask them to look into an appropriate minimum wage rate for apprentices in next year's report. The Government will respond to their recommendations in the summer.

YWCA's Parliamentary officer Helen Berresford said: "If the Government does accept the recommendation it really is great progress and a fantastic step for the More than one rung campaign and us.

The Commission's report also asked for small increases to the current national minimum wage for all workers and for the age at which people receive the adult rate to be lowered from 22-years-old to 21. Both of these recommendations have been accepted. The national minimum wage will rise by 7 pence per hour in October 2009. However the age at which employees receive the adult rate will not change until October 2010.

Helen Berresford said: "We campaigned to get rid of youth rates altogether however, this small change is still a win and welcomed."

James Anthony, UNISON national executive council member said on behalf of national minimum wage campaigners: "Against the backdrop of recession, when we need to be putting more money into the pockets of the low-paid, it is a surprisingly low increase.

"We are pleased that the government has responded positively to the LPC call for the adult rate to start from age 21. However, this small move actually highlights the continuing discrimination by age, preserved in the national minimum wage, which is again exempted from the provisions of the Equality Bill.

"Our message to the government is: we want and need more bold action to raise the level and end the injustices in the national minimum wage. We believe our campaign has played an important role in challenging the proposed zero increase, in winning the change in start of the adult age band, and the proposed inclusion of apprentices. Our campaign continues."

YWCA is part of the campaign to end age discrimination in the national minimum wage.

YWCA launches credit crunch survival guide

Living on a low income, keeping loans under control and financial abuse are just three of the subjects covered by a recession-busting leaflet launched today by YWCA. The guide is aimed at young women and features tips on saving money, low budget shopping and cutting costs.

The charity is concerned that women living on low incomes are currently finding it even more difficult to balance their limited weekly income. It believes they are getting into even greater financial difficulties.

"The women we work with have very limited incomes" says Sarah Payne, Chief Executive YWCA. "Within this leaflet we provide key pieces of financial information which, we hope, will help these women manage their very limited resources better."

"In the current economic climate everyone is worried about money. But young women in some of the poorest communities are particularly vulnerable. They tend to be on low incomes and sometimes lack the skills to manage their limited funds" Sarah continues: "Young mothers and teenage girls, who have had to leave unhappy homes, can find themselves suddenly living independently with little or no support. They find themselves in charge of household bills, with responsibilities that they've never had to think about before. We hope this leaflet will help them and demonstrate that YWCA is here to support them".

Women often do jobs that pay so badly they experience 'in-work poverty'. Nearly two-thirds of low paid workers are women. Sectors with the highest proportions of minimum-wage jobs are female-dominated; for example retail, hospitality, social care, hairdressing and cleaning.

According to the Trade Union Conference (TUC) it is likely that women's jobs will be affected more than in past recessions. More women have been made redundant since the beginning of 2008 than men. [TUC (2009) Women and Recession: How will this recession affect women at work?]

In times when money is scarce women on low incomes are more vulnerable to credit and store card offers, especially if they have young children. Often they do not realise the expensive interest charges they will incur if they do not pay off their account each month.

Linda Jack, Youth Policy Adviser at the Financial Service Authority (FSA) says: "I welcome this excellent and timely initiative from YWCA. The young women they work with are likely to be disproportionally affected by the credit crunch and will need as much support as possible to be able to effectively manage their money. This leaflet, alongside the outstanding support YWCA centres already offer to so many young women, will be a lifeline for those struggling to make ends meet and make the most of their money."

Some women attending YWCA centres have talked about boyfriends, having lost their jobs, taking money from them without asking and not paying them back or using their credit cards without permission - in some cases a form of financial abuse which is putting them in debt. The leaflet therefore looks at this issue and suggests ways to avoid falling into this trap.

You can download the credit crunch survival guide here.

Girls should have more to do than get drunk, says chief exec

Survey of young women shows disturbing evidence

Disturbing evidence of young women being deprived of money by controlling partners has come to light in a recent survey on money and debt carried out by YWCA England & Wales. The charity fears this could accelerate if the economic crisis deepens.

YWCA wanted to find out how the current crisis was affecting girls and young women emotionally and practically. They was surprised to discover that one third of young women surveyed admitted that their partners had deployed methods such as forcing young women to hand over cash or credit cards, taking benefits or forcing them to sign financial contracts in their name.

Interestingly, despite these admissions, many young women did not want to acknowledge that this was financial abuse, a recognised form of domestic violence, in which someone deprives a partner of enough money to meet basic needs through manipulation and control.

Gabriella was with her partner for nine months and now recognises those patterns:

"My boyfriend constantly asked me for money, which he spent on booze, and I'd have no money for myself. When I told him I didn't have any money left he called me a liar and checked my bank statements. He insulted me until my self-esteem was at rock bottom. I got help from my local YWCA and have built up my confidence since then but I think loads more women out there should be aware that this kind of behaviour counts as abuse and is unacceptable."

YWCA is already running programmes to help young women understand more about money management. It is working closely with charity Refuge, which this week published its own report on financial abuse, to raise awareness about it. It is concerned that, like many forms of abuse, it is largely misunderstood and hidden.

YWCA wants: tackling financial abuse to become part of the National Action Plan on domestic violence; improved financial assistance to women experiencing domestic violence and economic abuse; improved data collection to better reflect the crime itself, by both the police and through the British Crime Survey plus investment in further research; young women and men to receive education on financial abuse as part of their PSHE education on both money and relationships; and professionals such as youth workers, social workers, teachers and doctors to receive training and information so they can identify and support young women at risk of, and experiencing, financial abuse.

YWCA's director of policy said: "What's particularly concerning is that most young women in this kind of situation don't even realise they are being abused. Financial abuse doesn't necessarily involve violence; it is a damaging form of manipulation and control. Our worry is that when a partner feels weakened or diminished at times when money is tight, it could only lead to an escalation of the problem."

For more information read our briefings and information sheets on financial abuse, money and debt.