Call for action as 68,000 emergency food parcels distributed in the North East in just six months
by Emily Gray · ChronicleLiveAn anti-poverty charity says its community of food banks in the North East distributed over 68,000 emergency food parcels between April and September this year.
Alarmingly 23,228 of the food parcels provided by the Trussell Trust were for children facing hunger across the region. The majority of food parcels distributed in the UK were to families with children, with 63% of the total number of parcels going to households with children aged 0–16, the charity reports.
More than 277,000 people visited a food bank in the Trussell community for the first time between April and September. The total number of parcels provided across the UK is 67,000 fewer when compared to the same period last year, representing a 4% decrease.
Trussell says there are a number of possible reasons for this recent small dip, such as the gradual slowdown in the price hikes we experienced on food and bills in recent years, and an end to the Local Housing Allowance freeze in April, bringing support for private renters back in line with local rents.
However, Trussell says it’s difficult to say if there has been an actual drop in hunger and hardship. The need for emergency food is still persistently high, and the number of parcels provided across the UK is 69% greater than the same period in 2019.
Trussell says while food banks are a last resort for people who’ve been left isolated, facing hunger, and without enough money to live on, many are at breaking point due to years of growing numbers of people forced through their doors.
Winter is often the busiest time for food banks and Trussell is calling on the public to continue to play their part and support their local food banks to meet this urgent need, by volunteering, donating, fundraising or campaigning to help end hunger in the UK.
Food banks offer hope, dignity and relief to people facing hardship. Many need vital funds to provide services beyond distributing emergency food, such as advice and support that unlocks money someone should be getting and services aimed at helping people out of financial hardship.
Trussell says the evidence is clear that hunger in the UK isn’t a food problem, it's an income problem. People are being forced to turn to food banks because incomes from work, and social security payments, do not cover the cost of the essentials, such as food, bills, and toiletries.
That’s why Trussell has also joined forces with hundreds of communities, food banks and charities including the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, in calling on the UK government to take urgent action now. The charity says there is hope and it knows we can end hunger, if positive action is taken.
They say the UK government must act swiftly to follow up announcements in the recent Budget, with a clear plan to meet its manifesto commitment to end the need for emergency food and ensure that we do not see even more people facing hunger and hardship on its watch.
This plan should include investment in our social security system, at the very least introducing a protected minimum floor in Universal Credit to limit the amount of reductions that could be applied to a household’s Universal Credit, it's been added.
This would ensure, for the first time, that there would be a real safety net below which no one could fall. The charity says this is something that would be a low cost but concrete step towards ensuring our social security system protects people from facing hunger and hardship.
Emma Revie, chief executive of Trussell, said: "The sheer numbers of people in the North East still facing hunger and hardship is heartbreaking. This cannot go on and we refuse to stand by while so many of us are pushed to the brink, left without enough money to live on.
"Our food banks are a lifeline, offering a warm welcome and space to be heard. They need everyone to play their part to move us towards ending the need for emergency food in the North East.
"You can help make sure food banks can continue to provide warm, compassionate, practical support and advice this winter by volunteering, donating, fundraising or campaigning to help end hunger in the North East and the rest of the UK.
"The UK Government was elected with a manifesto pledge to end the need for emergency food and the time to act is now. There have been promising steps, but we need a clearer plan with more decisive action to invest in our social security system, if we are to end hunger once and for all."
To find out more about how you can support food banks visit here.
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