Families need “real support” in Budget, Birmingham social enterprise says
Change Kitchen founder urges government to scrap two-child benefit limit and boost help for low-income households
Last updated 26th Nov 2025
Ahead of the budget announcement later today, Birgit Kehrer, founder of the Birmingham social enterprise Change Kitchen, is calling for the government to offer more support to families and working people who are struggling with rising costs.
Birgit says she is seeing increasing numbers of people pushed into hardship, with many forced to make difficult choices. “People have to choose between heating and food, or sometimes forgo meals altogether,” she says.
Her organisation runs a kindness café in Balsall Heath, offering free meals with no questions asked. She says the pressures facing the community have intensified. “More people need support — and the people who are accessing support need more support.”
Birgit wants today’s Budget to provide meaningful relief for low-income families, including scrapping the two-child limit on benefits. She describes it as “a cruel law” that affects around 200,000 families, adding: “It feels utterly unfair to punish children for being part of a bigger family.”
Alongside providing meals, Change Kitchen also offers training opportunities for young people in the area. Birgit says investment in opportunities for young people would make the biggest difference locally. “In Birmingham we have such a high youth unemployment rate — to change that would mean everything. It would have a trickle-down effect.”
The Chancellor will set out the Budget this afternoon, and households, charities and community groups across Birmingham will be watching closely for measures that could ease the pressure in the months ahead.