WITH the troubling news this week that more than a quarter of children in Ceredigion are estimated to be living in poverty, the Cambrian News brings you an interactive map which allows you to compare your own ward with others in the county.

According to the End Child Poverty coalition of charities, 26.1 per cent of children in Ceredigion are living in poverty, after housing costs are taken into consideration, with eight wards in the county estimated to have more than a third of   its child residents living in poverty.

These are: Aberystwyth Penparcau (34.32 per cent), Aberystwyth Rheidol (41.48 per cent), Aberporth (33.55 per cent), Cardigan Mwldan (35.18 per cent), Cardigan Teifi (43.31 per cent), Llanarth (35.29 per cent), Llandyfriog (40.55 per cent), and Llangybi (36.67 per cent).

Explore the map by hovering your cursor over the wards. The zoom facility is available for exploring the smaller wards.

The annual estimates, which are not an       accurate count but rather an indication of    where child poverty is highest, are made by the Centre for Research in Social Policy on behalf       of the End Child Poverty Coalition based on HMRC and Labour Market Survey data.

Ceredigion MP Mark Williams said this week that the “staggeringly high” figures were “a real worry” and blamed it on the government’s welfare policies.

Mr Williams told the Cambrian News: “It is a real worry to see the number of children living in poverty in Wales continues to be staggeringly high, including over a quarter of all children living in Ceredigion.

“Unfortunately this is not only a sign of poverty, but the government’s failure to deal with it effectively through the benefits system."

See this week’s south editions for the full story, in shops and online on Wednesday