In Scotland today, many families are struggling to put food on the table and pay the bills. Shockingly, our research shows that children under four are at the greatest risk of facing hunger and hardship.
No child should have to know what a food bank is, let alone need one. But with one in four young children at risk of needing one, the reality is very different. In fact, food banks in the Trussell community distributed almost 140,000 emergency food parcels to families with children across Scotland in the past year, according to figures published yesterday.
Very young people face the highest risk of being in poverty in the UK. We know that the early years of a child’s life are crucial for their development and have a long-lasting impact on their adult life.
Children from poorer backgrounds start school at a disadvantage and then tend to go on to have worse educational outcomes than children from higher socioeconomic backgrounds.
This is because hunger and hardship create enormous barriers to children’s learning. If you grow up in a home where your parents go without food so you can eat and are consumed with anxiety about bills and mounting debt, sharing a room with your young siblings, in a damp and cold house, with coats over the bed because you can’t afford to put the heating on – the anxiety, sleep deprivation and chill in your bones is likely to distract you from learning.
Having a young child creates many extra costs. Baby food, baby formula, and nappies become expensive essentials you cannot do without. You might be fully prepared to have your child – the cot installed, the nursery painted. But if a parent is hit with an unexpected bill, becomes ill or is made redundant – they can quickly be pushed into a situation where they are unable to afford the essentials.
Food banks in the Trussell community tell us parents are doing everything they can to shield their children from hardship, such as skipping meals so their children have enough to eat. It shouldn’t have to be this way.
Young children are growing all the time, meaning more clothes to buy every time they do. Parents today are having to skip dinner to pay for the school shoes their toddler has outgrown, while a school trip letter asks for money they don’t have. The constant stress of trying to survive is a heavy burden to carry.
Not only that, but children become locked out of experiences everyone should be able to enjoy because of hunger and hardship. The local park might be free, but the petrol or bus fare you need to get there isn’t. Treating a child to an ice cream becomes a pipe dream.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. To reach a future where no one needs a food bank to survive, we need strong communities where people from different backgrounds come together to drive forward long-lasting change.
All of us can act now to make sure the next generation is protected from the levels of hunger and hardship we are seeing today, through donating food, funds or campaigning for change in your local area.
At a food bank, families can receive a warm welcome and a listening ear from a kind volunteer, who can provide emergency food as well as holistic support. Many of our food banks have financial advisors, to help people manage debt and ensure they receive the support they are eligible for, so they do not have to come to a food bank again.
No child should be held back by hunger. This can’t go on, and we won’t stop until everyone has enough money to afford the essentials.
Together, we can create lasting change. Help food banks be there for families facing hunger this summer and show your support at Trussell.org.uk