One in four households with children (25.8) have experienced food insecurity in the past month, with an estimated 4 million children affected

Food insecurity has doubled since January, with 4 million children now living in homes without adequate access to food, according to a new report by the Food Foundation.

The charity says that it has been conducting nationally representative surveys since the start of the pandemic to track levels of food insecurity and which groups in particular have been affected.

One in four households with children (25.8) have experienced food insecurity in the past month, with an estimated 4 million children affected. The charity says that this is the highest level since it began tracking food insecurity levels at the start of the pandemic.

Larger households are more likely to experience food insecurity, with 42.2% of households with 3 or more children not having adequate access to food.

The Food Foundation is calling on the Government to extend Free School Meals to all children in households receiving Universal Credit to ensure that all children in poverty have access to at least one nutritious meal a day at school.

The fact that nearly 10 million adults and 4 million children were unable to eat regular meals last month is a damning indictment on the fifth largest economy in the world, which such levels of poverty the result of political choices.

The latest survey findings come amid a cost of living crisis, with campaigners warning that matters could worsen should further cuts be made to benefits.

The Food Foundation has drafted a letter, which you can send to your MP, calling on the government to extend free school meals to all children from households in receipt of universal credit.

Basit Mahmood is editor of Left Foot Forward

Picture: Richard McKeever-Creative Commons

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