ALMOST four in 10 children in Penparcau and more than a quarter of children across Ceredigion are living in poverty, figures from a charity have shown.

The shocking statistics were revealed by End Child Poverty, which show that after housing costs are considered, 39.85 per cent of the more than 1,000 children in Penparcau and 26.62 per cent of children in Ceredigion were living in poverty between 2012 and 2013.

In 2013, funding for Communities First — the Welsh Government’s programme for tackling poverty — was withdrawn, but volunteers in the community soon stepped in and CF was replaced by Penparcau Community Forum.

A spokesperson for the forum said: “The community was really surprised when we saw this statistic, especially as there are more children in this ward than any other in the whole of Ceredigion.

“A statistic like this is clearly disappointing.

“We’d already seen Penparcau worsen by over 100 places in respect to the Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation last year, which was appalling.”

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