FOOD INSECURITY AMONG CHILDREN IN BRITAIN DOUBLES, AFFECTING 3.7 MILLION CHILDREN

Thu 02 March 2023:

Britain’s food insecure households number nearly double the number from the previous year, affecting 3.7 million children according to a new report.

According to a study released on Wednesday by The Food Foundation, approximately 22% of households this January reported that their children had directly experienced food insecurity in the previous month, nearly doubling the roughly 12% figure from January 2022.

The London-based organization emphasized that children across the nation, especially those in low-income households and those at risk of food insecurity, are being severely impacted by the cost of living crisis.

“This affects every aspect of their life from education, to their friendships and social development, to their physical and mental health, robbing them of their childhood,” read the report.

“For example, in households with children who had experienced food insecurity in the past month, 78% reported being worried about the impact of being unable to afford sufficient food on their children’s physical health and 76% on their mental health.”

Strong public support for free school meals

A national poll by The Food Foundation found overwhelming support for the expansion of free school meals.

According to the survey, 80% of people in England backed calls for the government to increase provision of free school meals to all children in households receiving Universal Credit, an umbrella term for financial benefits provided by social services in the UK.

There are approximately 800,000 children in England who do not qualify for free school meals despite living in poverty, the report said.

Currently, children in England are subjected to the strictest eligibility criteria for free school meals, compared to other devolved nations in the UK, it added.

“This results in children in England being unfairly left behind because the UK government is failing to take the issue of children’s food insecurity as seriously as the devolved governments,” read the report.

“Northern Ireland’s income threshold for eligibility is almost twice as high as in England and they are exploring options for expanding this further. Scotland and Wales are both in the process of rolling out free meals to all children in primary school regardless of income.”

All primary school students in the capital will be entitled to free school meals as a one-year emergency measure, according to recent announcements from London’s Mayor Sadiq Khan.

While praising the decision, The Food Foundation issued a warning that it would “further increase regional inequalities in England.”

“The London initiative puts even greater pressure on national government to honor its levelling up commitment and eradicate the postcode lottery of access to free school meals across the country,” the report said.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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