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Social exclusion is a complex phenomenon. It is multi-dimensional, and can pass from generation to generation. Social exclusion includes poverty and low income, but is a broader concept and encompasses some of the wider causes and consequences of deprivation. The UK Government defines social exclusion as 'a shorthand term for what can happen when people or areas suffer from a combination of linked problems such as unemployment, poor skills, low incomes, unfair discrimination, poor housing, high crime, bad health and family breakdown.' The problems of social exclusion are often linked and mutually reinforcing, and as a result it is often difficult to disentangle its causes and consequences. The risk of social exclusion is highest for those with multiple disadvantages. This document is a discussion paper intended to stimulate debate on social exclusion around a series of questions and draw together expertise to inform the UK Government's work