Research by Save the Children in various countries this year, revealed how children are paying the heaviest price for rising levels of poverty.
LONDON/GENEVA 15 December 2025 – Rising costs of food, housing, and basic services pushed millions more children into poverty worldwide in 2025, with this deepening crisis reshaping childhoods, according to Save the Children research across multiple countries.
Child poverty functions like an “invisible tax” on economic growth and prosperity, putting increased pressure on welfare, housing, and justice systems. Poor children are less healthy, less likely to graduate, and less likely to be employed—all of which can create a cycle of poverty that can last generations.
Research by Save the Children in various countries this year, revealed how children are paying the heaviest price for rising levels of poverty.
ACROSS EUROPE: EU Poverty Targets Reversed as More Children Fall Behind
Earlier this year, Save the Children reported that an additional 446,000 children had been pushed to the brink of poverty since 2019—despite the European Union’s (EU) pledge to reduce child poverty by 5 million by 2030. Instead of reversing the trend, the total number of children at risk has risen to 19.5 million, meaning one in four children across the EU are now at risk of poverty or social exclusion. The findings show that rising living costs and insufficient child-focused investment are deepening inequalities across the region.
JAPAN: Nearly All Low-Income Families Cannot Afford Basic Foods
A national survey in Japan of about 7,850 low-income households—representing about 14,000 children—found that more than 90% of families struggle to buy food for their children due to rising food costs. About 60% of those surveyed said they had reduced or stopped buying certain staple food items altogether. The findings follow Japan’s highest inflation rate in nearly a decade, highlighting how economic pressures are directly limiting children’s access to nutritious diets.
SPAIN: Children Face Unsafe Heat at Home and Limited Summer Opportunities
About one in four children—over 2 million—in Spain live in homes that cannot maintain safe indoor temperatures during extreme heat, due to energy poverty. This research came as the country recorded its hottest summer on record. A separate analysis by Save the Children found that one in three households with children cannot afford summer holidays, leaving many children indoors, as the child poverty rate in Spain is the highest in the EU.
SWEDEN: Rising Costs Leaves One in Eight Children without Essentials
Child poverty is increasing in Sweden, now affecting about one in eight children—or 276,000—as rising costs push basic needs further out of reach. When a child in Sweden grows up in poverty, it means that the family has difficulty getting enough money to cover the necessary household expenses and the child's basic needs. It may be that parents cannot afford new clothes, nutritious food or sports equipment for their child. These financial pressures are limiting children’s access to equal opportunities, widening gaps in wellbeing and development.
GERMANY: Children of Low-Income Families Increasingly Emotionally Stressed
German parents are increasingly concerned about their finances, with one in four surveyed by Save the Children now worried they will not be able to meet basic needs such as heating, housing, clothing and food. The trend is most severe among households earning under €3,000 a month, where 57% of respondents said they can no longer afford essentials, an increase of 21 percentage points in September from January 2025. Nearly half of lower-income families report they rarely or never afford holidays, children’s hobbies or meals out, and one in five parents notice signs of emotional stress linked to financial pressure in their children.
Save the Children, which works in over 100 countries, is urging all governments to invest in solutions focused on ending child poverty, and listen extensively to children whose daily lives are impacted by poverty to ensure policy solutions uphold their right to a standard of living that will meet their basic needs and allow them to develop their full potential.
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