Faith leaders from across the country joined forces in an urgent call for the UK government to go further and be ‘bold and ambitious’ in its forthcoming Child Poverty Strategy.

The call is shared in an open letter to the co-chairs of the Ministerial Child Poverty Taskforce, Bridget Philipson, Secretary of State for Education, and Liz Kendall, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions.

The letter is signed by 35 faith leaders from all six of the major faith traditions represented in the UK, including Emma Jackson, convener of the Church of Scotland’s Public Life and Social Justice Programme Group.

Currently 4.3 million children in the UK are living in poverty, according to a new report from Action for Children, and without further action a further 400,000 are likely to be pulled into poverty by the end of the decade.

The letter states: “While we come from different faith traditions, we share a belief that working to end poverty should be a hallmark of any decent, compassionate society. We also believe that transformational change is possible. We are hopeful that the Child Poverty Strategy could be a turning point for the communities we serve, and we are ready to work in partnership with people of goodwill across society to ensure that every child has the start in life they deserve. We anticipate your strategy and pray that it will rise to the challenges we face.”