A 'family stimulus' would help support hard-hit families through the pandemic, a new report has said.

The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) argues the proposal would provide a much-needed boost to the income of hard-hit families through the social security system.

The think tank said that doubling child benefit would lift 500,000 children out of poverty while boosting GDP by £19bn.

The report concludes: 'Families have and will continue to struggle through the pandemic. To limit the damage, urgent uplifts should be applied to the significantly weakened social security system for families with children. Such payments will reduce child poverty, whilst also stimulating the economy.'

The report also calls for targeted investment in childcare to prevent further closures of cash-strapped providers. This includes £88m of transitional funding and keeping free entitlement funding at pre-pandemic occupancy rates.