One of two think poor children miss social activities

TRONDHEIM. Young boys at football training.Photo: Gorm Kallestad / SCANPIX

Not being able to participate in social activities is the worst of growing up in poverty in Norway, is what half the population believes, according to a new survey.

In a survey conducted by Child, Youth and Family Affairs (Bufdir) in collaboration with Opinion said 46 percent of those who attended that the worst of growing up in poverty in Norway is not able to participate or be excluded from social activities.

Being outside

As examples of poverty half will give the examples of not affording to attend recreational activities, school trips or birthdays.

Professor of Social Work at Oslo and Akershus University College, Mona Sandbæk has researched child poverty in Norway and believes that the high awareness of exclusion is because the topic has received much attention.

– It is about money for school trips, or invitations for birthdays, and there has been much attention on the arts and football training sessions, she said.

Young emphasize food

In addition to the survey via Opinion, Bufdir has asked youth about poverty, on the site ung.no. A full 60 percent of those who responded associate poverty with not having enough food. Only 15 percent responded “not to be involved in something.”

Many involved in the comments discuss how to understand poverty in a wealthy country.

– In Norway, one is poor if one cannot go on vacation, go to a restaurant occasionally, theater and the like. It’s really nonsense. If one does not have the money for bills, food and clothing, then can one begin to talk about poverty, answers one on the website.

Smartphone no indicator

Almost everyone, that is, 93 percent of the respondents to the survey and youngsters online, said that young people can be poor even if they have a smartphone.

– Almost all children in Norway have PCs and very many have mobile phones. Impoverished parents generally extend very far for their children to have what the other kids have. When they have to, many go without things for themselves, says Sandbæk.

Scope

In the survey, more than half estimated that there are 1.4 poor in a class with 30 children. It fits well with the government estimates, which says around three children.

Nearly 5,000 have answered the question on ung.no whether their own family is poor, of those, nearly half indicated that they are not poor, but they do not have as much to spend as the others in their class.

 

Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today