| A Minimum Income Standard for the UK is a major ongoing research
project producing benchmark minimum standards for different family
types. These show how much families need in order to afford to buy
goods and services that members of the public, in detailed discussions,
decide are needed for a minimum acceptable standard of living. The initial research programme ran from 2006 to 2008, culminating in a widely-publicised initial report in July 2008. Having overseen the programme for its funder, Rowntree, I've been working on it more directly since October 2008, as Head of Income Studies at the Centre for Research in Social Policy (CRSP) at Loughborough University, where I lead the very capable team carrying out this work, with Noel Smith and Abby Davis doing most of the research and Nicky Selby and Sharon Walker providing admin support. At the launch of the first report, I explained to the BBC's Today Programme exactly what it does and doesnt represent, and with the update in 2010, again on Today, I told John Humphries why our 2010 update of the research shows that people are not retreating into a more austere version of minimum needs despite economic adversity. Our team is now looking at how minimum requirements may differ in rural areas. Our methods have been taken up in Ireland, and we've had interest from teams hoping to emulate it in Japan, France and Portugal (watch this space). The standard has many applications - among them a project to measure its carbon footprint, and a modest proposal for resolving the MPs' expenses crisis. | Key findings
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