Poverty Index Essay Competition

First prize: £1,000 and publication in New Statesman . One runner-up will win £500.

The New Statesman has joined forces with The Webb Memorial Trust to develop a ‘Measurement of Poverty Index’. Young people are hereby invited to submit essays of no more than 2,500 words on the following topic:

“If Beatrice Webb were alive today and wanted to compile an index of poverty in the UK, what factors would be included, how would they be measured, and how would each factor be weighted? Also, how would you use such an index to promote the issue of poverty in the public and political consciousness?“

Questions to be answered in essays:

What does poverty mean to people?

What factors should be taken into account in defining poverty?

And, crucially, how can we engage more people in solving it?

Deadline 15 October, 2011

Entrants must be 18-25 years old

Winner and runner-up announced at Awards Reception, December, in London (all shortlisted entries invited)

Please submit your entries to webb@cranehouse.eu

Submitted essays will be judged by:

Richard Rawes (Chair, Webb Trust), Jason Cowley (Editor, NS), Baroness Ruth Lister, Kate Green MP (former CE of CPAG, Child Poverty Action Group), Chris White MP, Paul Hackett (Director Smith Institute)

For information, See Press Release in New Stateman.