Study reveals some families unable to meet children’s basic needs

MORE than six of every 100 (6.5 per cent) families with children under 16 in Spain can’t afford to buy them new clothes, a National Statistics Institute survey has revealed.
The problem was found to mostly affect homes where the head of the family was young (between 16 and 29 years old) or from outside Europe, where all family members were out of work or single parent families.
Other problems meeting basic needs families with children reported were an inability to provide fruit and vegetables every day in 1.2 per cent of cases, and an inability to feed children meat or fish every two days in 2.5 per cent of cases.
One in ten children under 16 were unable to hold birthday parties or other celebrations due to lack of funds, and 11.3 families couldn’t afford to sign their children up for sports activities.
Bikes or roller-skates were an unachievable dream for 4.9 per cent of the families with children, and 1.9 per cent said they couldn’t afford books for their children either.
The study also revealed that 41.3 per cent of homes couldn’t afford to replace old or broken furniture, and 11.8 per cent of adults questioned said they went out with friends or family less than once a month due to lack of money.