A SOCIAL enterprise to help fund children starting school has been started by a group of Liberal Democrat councillors.

Markers for Mindfulness, based in Didcot, has been started by Oxfordshire County Councillors to help children returning to school with a £1,400 donation.

Councillor Sally Povolotsky, of the Hendreds and Harwell division, has been following Daniel Lloyd, founder of Markers for Mindfulness mission the last few years and was “stunned” when he shared the statistic that for every class of 30 students, nine are living in poverty.

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Mr Lloyd said: “Didcot alone is split into wards and in one ward alone 13 per cent of children are living in poverty.

“No ward in Didcot is unaffected by child poverty. This number is expected to rise in the next few months.

“If you meet the basic needs of a child then you can unlock the potential for the rest of that day, the rest of that year and the rest of their lives. “

Ms Povolotsky added: “With the continued cost of living crisis many families across Oxfordshire are slipping below the poverty line we want to make sure no child in Oxfordshire is without the basics this September and we are all inspired by Daniels work”

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Councillor John Howson said: “Every student should have the essentials they need to start the next chapter of their educational journey and having these can make a positive impact on their school day and mental well-being”

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Read more from this author

This story was written by Gee Harland. She joined the team in 2022 as a senior multimedia reporter.

Gee covers Wallingford, Wantage and Didcot.

Get in touch with her by emailing: Gee.harland@newsquest.co.uk

Follow her on Twitter @Geeharland

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