04 September 2023 , 15:00
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Foodbank bosses are braced for a “devastating winter” as families battle the cost-of-living crisis. Four out of five centre chiefs reported a surge in demand for emergency packages between April and July compared with the same period last year.
The study by the Independent Food Aid Network found foodbank managers are “deeply concerned about the growing number of people with nowhere else to turn and a calamitous winter to come”. The IFAN said “overburdened foodbank teams fear a devastating winter as unprecedented demand soars through the summer”.
Charities fear that as temperatures drop and people turn up their radiators in the coming months, families will have to cut back further on household food budgets - forcing them to seek emergency help. Ryan Legg, of Storehouse Foodbank in Babergh, Suffolk, said: “We are very concerned about the increase in demand once heating is required. I'm not sure how people will cope again this winter.”
Some 84% of charities in the IFAN surveyed reported increased need when they compared spring and summer this year with last summer. Donations to foodbanks have plunged as hard-up households cut back, while existing stocks are dwindling.
The IFAN said if, as expected, demand increases further, more than half of the organisations in its network would need to cut the support they offer or turn away hungry people. “The pressure on volunteers and food charity staff is unrelenting and unsustainable,” it added. “Foodbank workers and volunteers are overstretched, overworked and under-resourced. Foodbank staff and volunteers are being forced to make impossible decisions about cutting back on support and deciding to limit the number of food parcels provided.”
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Paul O’Brien, of the Micah Liverpool charity, warned: “Eventually we will need to compromise our service, we can no longer spend our way out of the problem. The cost of living is affecting donations of food and finance which will eventually take its toll. Reserves of food built up during the pandemic have gone and finance is dwindling. Foodbanks cannot sustain this level of poverty for much longer.”
IFAN coordinator Sabine Goodwin said: “The Government must urgently take heed of increasingly widespread and alarming reports of unprecedented financial hardship from across the UK. The impact of rising poverty levels is being felt across generations. Foodbank staff and volunteers will continue to do their utmost to provide support but the weight of responsibility on their shoulders is too large.
“The charitable food aid sector is being pushed past breaking point. The solution is to reduce pressure on people struggling to afford the essentials, as well as foodbanks, by ensuring incomes are adequate and support is provided through a cash first approach.”
The Department of Work and Pensions was contacted for comment.
A Government spokeswoman said: “We know people are struggling which is why we’re bearing down on inflation and providing record financial support worth an average £3,300 per household.
“On top of this we have raised benefits - including Universal Credit - by 10.1%, increased the National Living Wage and have extended the Household Support Fund to help families with food, energy and other essential costs.
“We have invested a record £90million to support free debt advice in England and our Breathing Space scheme gives those facing financial difficulties space to receive debt advice, without pressure from creditors or mounting debts.”
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