• The continued cost of living crisis and the Westminster government’s radical plans for greater devolution in England make it vital to better understand how the existing distribution of powers across the UK already shape support for families on low incomes.
• This report draws on new research to examines how governments and local areas across the UK reduce essential costs and increase household incomes, as well as documenting the variation between different parts of the UK.
• Insight from discussion groups with parents and carers from all four countries of the UK reveal that families know little about the differences between nations and frequently view postcode-based inequalities as profoundly unfair.

We make five key recommendations for any plans to further devolve social security, with wider relevance for the ‘rewiring the state’ agenda:

1. Devolution and localisation need a strong UK-wide floor
2. Funding must follow responsibility,
3. Governments should distinguish between entitlement and discretion,
4. Devolution should be designed with families, not simply for them,
5. Evaluation should focus on outcomes and experience,

As the UK government develops its devolution programme, these principles can help ensure that transferring power strengthens the social safety net, improves accountability and supports efforts to reduce child poverty across the UK.

The research, and the findings that emerge from it, are guided by our Experts-by-Experience Panel, twelve parents in receipt of social security, three from each nation across the UK. You can read more about the work they been doing together in their afterword.