Majority of children in poverty have working parent, research finds

The majority of children classified as living in "absolute poverty" now have at least one parent in work, new research has found.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) found that the majority of children living below the poverty line had at least one parent in paid employment.

With more people in work in the UK than ever before, the number of children in poverty living in a household with no working parents had fallen from nearly one in four in the mid 1990s to fewer than one in six in 2014-15.

IFS director Robert Joyce, a co-author of the study, said:

While the IFS said it was "good news" that employment income now accounted for half the income of the poorest fifth of households - up from less than a third 20 years ago - it meant they were more vulnerable to any downturn in the labour market.

But Work and Pensions Secretary Damian Green said the report showed the Government was making progress in building "a Britain that works for everyone".