The right to education Education is both a human right in itself and an indispensable means of realising other human rights.38 Education is essential for the development of human potential, enjoyment of the full range of human rights, and respect for the rights of others. Education is the primary vehicle by which economically and socially marginalised adults and children can lift themselves out of poverty and obtain the means to participate fully in their communities. Education is not just about the geographic and economic availability and accessibility of quality primary and secondary schools where teaching is suitably adapted to be appropriate and acceptable. It is also not just about tertiary level study such as at university. The right to education also includes equal rights and access to vocational training, retraining and upskilling. This is extremely important to counter poverty in working households, given how the NZWRI Research shows education and workforce skills impact on the prevalence of poverty in working households. The right to education and poverty in working households are linked in three main ways: 4. Reduced access to the right to education, particularly vocational and technical training, leads to higher prevalence of poverty in working households: The NZWRI Research shows that those with lower educational achievement experience a higher prevalence of poverty. 5. Poverty in working households reduces the likely enjoyment of the right to education: those in working households experiencing poverty are less likely to be able to access or improve their enjoyment of the right to education – they have less disposable income available to spend on education, and are more susceptible to the disruptions to education that are brought about by less secure housing. Their higher risk of health difficulties makes realising the right to education harder. In Aotearoa New Zealand, a particular area of concern is the impact that poverty in working households has upon children and their ability to successfully engage in education. 6. Increasing the enjoyment of the right to education can reduce poverty in working households: one’s level of education is part of the ‘occupation hierarchy’ that determines the likelihood of working households experiencing poverty: higher levels of educational attainable is linked to higher job status and higher income, and less propensity of working households to experience poverty. Again, the right to education is inherently linked to the other rights and their ability to alleviate poverty in working households: Improving access to decent work and fair working conditions is more difficult when a person lacks access to the right to education, as this places people lower in the ‘occupational hierarchy’ and thus more susceptible to poverty. The right to food The right to food is compromised when people do not have sufficient income to feed themselves and their families adequately.39 Food security is an important element of the right to food, and it encompasses assured access to sufficient food that is nutritious, of good quality and safe; meets cultural needs; and has been acquired in socially acceptable ways.40 … malnutrition, under-nutrition and other problems which relate to the right to adequate food and the right to freedom from hunger also exist in some of the most economically developed countries. Fundamentally, the roots of the problem of hunger and malnutrition are not lack of food but lack of access to available food, inter alia because of poverty …41 While there is no overall shortage of food supply in Aotearoa New Zealand, there are households that do not have sufficient income to feed themselves and pay for other basics, such as accommodation, heating and clothing. We know that large families, sole parents and the unemployed are particularly vulnerable to food insecurity, along with Māori and Pacific households, especially those with children. These are also the same working households who are disproportionately affected by poverty. Food choices are likely to be compromised for families experiencing poverty, who would need to spend a greater proportion of their income on food. He Urupare Tika Tangata mō te Pōharatanga ō ngā Whānau Whaimahi 15