Post Covid-19 Crisis and its Impact on Poverty and Destitution in Stoke-on-Trent

In May 2020, a report was produced by Professor David Etherington (Staffordshire Business School, Staffordshire University), for the Hardship Commission (HC), following an earlier study carried out with the aim of making an assessment of the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on Stoke-on-Trent. Before the COVID-19 crisis Stoke-on-Trent displayed the features of an economy and labour market which was causing comparatively high rates of poverty. The level of Child Poverty was 34.1% (equivalent to 21,652 children), the second highest in the West Midlands after Birmingham (35.6%) and the 8th highest nationally.

The purpose of this report, 10 months on from the previous study, is to update the information and evidence base in relation to the way the COVID-19 crisis is now affecting Stoke-on-Trent’s residents with respect to further poverty and destitution.