The Norfolk Anti-Poverty Alliance is a movement of organisations and individuals who want to create a future where all of us can thrive.
6 June – our next event!
After a fantastic event on 26 February, we are delighted to be launching the Norfolk Anti-Poverty Alliance in King’s Lynn. Join us on Friday 6 June, 4 – 6.30pm at Kings Lynn Town Hall. Speakers TBA. Tickets will be free, and are available on Eventbrite.
If you provide services locally that support people in hardship, and would like a stall to illustrate the work you do, please let us know via this form.
Our work
Watch our Norwich launch event
We have three core workstreams:
To campaign for benefit payments to be set at a live-able level, based on an independent review of the cost of essential items
To engage with local partners, to understand their targets and plans around tackling hardship
To ensure the voices of people with lived experience are heard nationally and locally.
Our vision
Our vision is a future where all residents of Norfolk have the dignity and security of having what we need to stay warm, dry, clean and fed.
Our mission
We are an Alliance of organisations and individuals that tackle poverty in Norfolk by campaigning for policy change; nationally and locally.
Experiences of poverty vary widely, but some indications of the hardship people are experiencing include:
- In some areas of Norfolk almost 10% of people have negative budgets – where money coming in does not meet the cost of essential spending, according to Citizens Advice data;
- As a result, people build up debt as bills cannot be paid. Norfolk Community Advice Network (NCAN) partners saw a 15% increase in requests for debt advice in 2023-24 compared to the year before;
- Norfolk Community Law Service saw a 70% rise in the number of people needing help to access welfare benefits in 2023/24 compared to a year before. It has seen a 71% rise in overall clients in just 4 years;
- Welfare benefits are paid at a level that is too low for many people to live on; almost two thirds of households using Trussell Trust foodbanks in Norfolk in 2023-24 were unable to work and were reliant on benefits;
- Age UK Norwich reports that 91% of clients who turn to the charity for advice are seeking help with income, debt, housing or bills.
The Norfolk Anti-Poverty Alliance will:
- Identify policies which drive poverty in Norfolk and campaign for change nationally and locally;
- Build and illustrate public and political support for policy change that would tackle poverty;
- Uplift people with experience of poverty and amplify their voices, illustrating the impacts of harmful policies and making the case for change.
Get involved
To find out more and join our next meeting, drop us a line at campaigns@ncan.co.uk.
About the Alliance
The Anti-Poverty Alliance was kick-started by Trussell, following a roundtable in autumn 2023 on hunger in Norfolk. Norfolk Community Advice Network (NCAN) is coordinating the alliance. This builds on on our work declaring a Cost of Living Emergency and calling for an extension to the Household Support Fund.