Families with high school children: the need for social assistance

Abstract

Families with children in Russia have a high risk of poverty. Often mothers do not work in these families, and the income of working family members together with social support measures are not sufficient. In recent years, support for families with children has been priority of social policy. At the same time, the State social assistance depends on the age of a child, and as the child is growing older the social assistance is decreasing. Until 2021 the whole variety of monetary payments to children was limited to the age category of 7 years (for all families) and up to 17 years (for single-parent families). These age limits put other children at a disadvantage as compared to children receiving assistance. That's why in March 2022 the Government announced a monthly cash payment for all children living in low-income families aged from 8 to 17 years. The next age limit for children in low-income families getting social support leaves without benefits children aged 17-18 years. Usually they do not have their own income, but they require not less, but more family expenses for their maintenance. The main goal of the study was to show that families with children aged 16-17 bear the same expenses as families with children under 16 years of age, but they have no additional sources of income. The study was based on the data from a population survey (Household Budget Survey-2019) and a longitudinal survey of families with school-age children (Russian Longitudinal Monitoring Survey of HSE2018-2019). The study emphasized the need of social support for families with senior school-age children.