About 40% of young adults cannot afford to buy one of the cheapest homes in their area even with a 10% deposit, according to a new research. The Institute for Fiscal Studies said house prices in England have risen by 173% over two decades. But average pay for 25-34 year-olds has grown by just 19% over the same period. In 1996, 93% of those with a deposit who borrowed four and a half times their salary could purchase a home but that
Medical experts have been told to draw up advice on the maximum amount of time young people should spend on social media, the health secretary has said. In an interview with the Observer, father-of-three Matt Hancock said he was “very worried” about the impact on children’s mental health. He said he hoped the guidelines would become the “norm”, like the recommended maximum alcohol consumption for adults. England’s chief medical officer has been asked to put together the advice. Mr Hancock told
The catastrophic economic consequences of a hard Brexit for the UK and damage to the rest of the EU understandably dominate the headlines. It must be a concern for everyone, regardless of how they voted in the referendum, that after a two-year wait for a government plan the main customs proposals have already been ruled out and warnings are growing about a damaging no-deal Brexit. Most obviously, there are around a million Britons who live on the European continent. According to
Low-earning parents working full-time are still unable to earn enough to provide their family with a basic, no-frills lifestyle, research suggests. A single parent on the National Living Wage is £74 a week short of the minimum income needed, according to the Child Poverty Action Group. A couple with two children would be £49 a week short of the income needed, the charity said. But this was better than last year, when couples were £59 a week short. The National Living Wage
Millions of pounds of is being spent on the government’s flagship citizenship scheme for young people while local youth clubs are closing, councils say. The National Citizen Service, a four-week summer scheme for 15 to 17-year-olds – accounts for 95% of central government spending on youth services. But the Local Government Association said only 12% of eligible teens took part in 2016. The government said the service has improved 400,000 young people’s lives and was investing another £80 million on youth projects. But the
