How does the government define 'poverty' in the UK

Question

I keep reading about how so many children are living in poverty in the UK, even in working families (last I heard there were 2.1 million children in this situation).

Poverty seems such a dramatic word and I can't really imagine that many children are living in what I would discribe as poverty so at what income level do they define people as 'disadvantaged' or 'in poverty'?

Answer 1

 In United Kingdom there is no absolute poverty. Rate of poverty in England is measured by minimum income standards', which basically estimate the level of income required to purchase a given basket of goods and services. However in a UK setting,  no one in the UK lives on very low incomes.