Poverty in Migrant Households
Increased understanding of migrant experiences and support for new, imaginative and effective ways to confront challenges and disadvantages is central to Migration Policy Scotland’s work.
About this project
Increased understanding of migrant experiences and support for new, imaginative and effective ways to confront challenges and disadvantages is central to Migration Policy Scotland’s work.
Tackling poverty in migrant households is an ongoing stream of work at MPS, grown out of an original two-year project funded by abrdn Financial Fairness Trust. This combined Scotland-wide research on poverty amongst migrants who had arrived to work, study or join their families with a policy laboratory that brought together practitioners, including people with lived experience of migration and poverty, to co-produce practical, feasible interventions that help address aspects of the hardship our research revealed.
The interventions we built together were then successfully piloted and evaluated with funding from Scottish Government. They are now being rolled out Scotland-wide (and in some cases in England). They are improving access to advice and support for tens of thousands of migrants as well as making a reality of ‘person centred’ and ‘no wrong door’ approaches to poverty reduction in Scotland (see practical resources below).
MPS also used its peer research approach to carry out research to inform the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2026-31. Commissioned by the Scottish Government alongside stakeholder engagement, this helped to broaden perspectives on migrant poverty among policymakers. We were able to show that a wider group of migrants are experiencing serious hardship while unable to access key mainstream routes out of poverty. The result has been more concerted effort to include migrants in policy thinking and practice interventions to reduce poverty.
Reports and briefings
-
Mainstreaming Solutions: New approaches for effective interventions to tackle poverty in migrant households
Migration Policy Scotland’s project Tackling Financial Disadvantage in Migrant Households adds to clear and growing evidence that inequalities linked to experiences of migration and deriving from the immigration system impact significantly on poverty in…
-
Financial disadvantage in migrant households: Report
The analysis shows that financial disadvantage in migrant households is not only the result of individual circumstances. It is also shaped by the interaction between the immigration system, labour market conditions and the design of anti-poverty measures.…
-
Policy Briefing: Including Migrants in Policy and Practice to Reduce Poverty
Migration Policy Scotland’s research shows that migrants are disadvantaged in relation to each of the main pathways to poverty reduction recognised by Scottish Government and Scotland’s wider anti-poverty movement: reducing costs; increasing incomes…
-
Tackling Child Poverty in Migrant Families: Engaging Migrant Perspectives in a consultation for the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2026-2031
This report on child poverty in migrant families was commissioned by the Scottish Government. Migration Policy Scotland was asked to bring migrant perspectives into the evidence gathering and engagement for the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2026–2031.
Practical resources
-
Local Service Maps Suited to Migrants Needs
Knowing where to turn for help and navigating an unfamiliar landscape of advice and support services present specific challenges for people who have moved to Scotland. Advisors and services can also struggle to know…
-
Resources to support Accessible Intercultural Communication
For migrants whose first language is not English communicating with service providers can be challenging. Front line and reception staff can also lack confidence and struggle to know how best to help.
-
Guidance for Financial Health Checks Appropriate to Migrants Needs
Financial health checks are an important part of income maximization support and advice services. However, benefit checks are often a main focus. This can be less helpful for migrant service users – especially those…
-
Blogs and perspectives
-
All Hands On Deck -Working collaboratively to tackle poverty in migrant households
Poverty in migrant households remains a significant and persistent issue across the UK. Evidence consistently shows that migrants are more likely to experience poverty than people who are UK-born. This reflects a combination of structural barriers,…
-
Perspectives: Open the Door – Working together to address financial disadvantage in migrant households
Poverty migration migrants Scotland financial disadvantage is at the centre of Open the Door, a blog reflecting on partnership working to address financial hardship in migrant households. In this blog, our core team of peer researchers from Migration…
-
What participants say
-
Really valuable gathering of talent and perspectives on migrant issues. Would be very interested in future MPS events and would recommend to colleagues. Fantastic job!
Showcase event participant, September 2025 -
Thank you for the diversity of speakers and the insights they shared. The focus on practical, targeted and effective changes is extremely valuable, as it prompts participants to not only discuss but follow up with actions.
Showcase event participant, September 2025 -
The report has ignited a renewed call to reflect on our services and how we can truly bring the 'no wrong door' policy into practice. MPS does really well to bring together policy and lived experience in an evidence-based way.
Advice sector worker with lived experience of migration, report launch
Project background
-
Over a two year period we enhanced strategic policy thinking on effective interventions to reduce poverty in migrant households by:
- Providing evidence on barriers for migrant households to increase incomes; additional costs for migrant households; challenges in the delivery of financial inclusion and employability services.
- Trialling MPS Policy Laboratory: a new approach to policymaking through mobilising the knowledge of multiple stakeholders to produce effective solutions through pathfinder initiatives.
- Developing and advocating for the implementation of clearly articulated, feasible and effective recommendations for policy and practice.
-
Tackling Financial Disadvantage in Migrant Households, 3rd September 2025, COSLA Conference Centre, Edinburgh.
Migration Policy Scotland, partners and colleagues shared the learning and outcomes emerging from two years of work identifying the barriers and challenges that underpin poverty and financial disadvantage in migrant households. The showcase included Pathfinder Initiatives emerging from the policy laboratory.
-
Tackling Financial Disadvantage in Migrant Households: Research Report Launch, 9th October 2024, online.
This event launched our Findings Report and marked the starting point of our Policy Laboratory to drive change in policymaking and practice through co-development of feasible, fundable and effective solutions.
-
The project was designed and delivered in partnership with:
The project was funded by abrdn Financial Fairness Trust. The tackling child poverty report was funded by Scottish Government.
Work with us on migrant poverty
We are always keen to hear from organisations and researchers working on poverty and financial disadvantage in migrant households. Get in touch to explore how we can work together.