Breakthrough

Government budgets are full of numbers, and it’s often hard to know what the changes really mean 🤷

But it’s important to remember - these changes didn’t just happen by themselves.

Behind some of the biggest announcements are YEARS of campaigning by people who refused to let their issue go away. ✊

That’s why we wanted to shout out a few of the people & orgs who fought for some of the changes announced:

👶 Self-employed dads and partners getting access to paternity pay

@dadshiftuk @olga.fitzroy & @pregnant_then_screwed led the way in challenging a system that left self-employed parents without the same support as employees.

🎰 Higher taxes on gambling machines

Will Prochaska, @gamblingwithlives & Matt Zarb-Cousin have helped keep the harms caused by gambling in the political conversation, challenging an industry with considerable resources and influence.

🏠 More money for social homes & tackling rough sleeping

@kwajotweneboa has spent years exposing the conditions people are forced to live in & demanding accountability from social landlords. @crisis_uk & Manoel Filho have also helped make homelessness impossible to dismiss as an abstract policy problem.

📚 £15 million for charities getting books to children

@booktrust has spent years working to ensure children can access books, regardless of their background. And Dolly Parton's @imaginationlibraryuk which the chancellor shouted out in his statement, put books into the hands of children around the world.

🤝 Action on the Carer’s Allowance cliff edge

The Carer Poverty Coalition — representing hundreds of organisations — and campaigners like Karina Moon have challenged a system in which earning just £1 over a threshold could mean losing an entire allowance.

All these changes show: campaigning WORKS.

And the people closest to a problem are often the ones who know exactly what needs to change.

Did we forget anyone❓Tag and celebrate them in the comments below!