Demand soars at North Yorkshire foodbanks
The Trussell Trust gave out almost 18,000 emergency parcels in the year to March
New figures released today by the Trussell Trust reveal that almost 18,000 emergency food parcels were provided to people facing hardship in North Yorkshire between April 2022 and March 2023.
That compares to just under 9,000 four years ago.
The charity annual statistics also show that as an increasing number of people struggle to afford the essentials, across the UK more than 760,000 people accessed a food bank in the Trussell Trust network for the first time.
Adam Raffell is the Manager of York foodbank: "It's just really sad to see that so many people are struggling at the moment and it's not right that people are being referred to foodbanks just to get by, we really need more in place to support local families."
Speaking about the rising need for emergency food, Emma Revie, Chief Executive at the Trussell Trust, said:
“These new statistics are extremely concerning and show that an increasing number of people are being left with no option but to turn to charitable, volunteer-run organisations to get by and this is not right. The continued increase in parcel numbers over the last five years indicates that it is ongoing low levels of income and a social security system that isn’t fit for purpose that are forcing more people to access food banks, rather than just the recent cost of living crisis or the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Food banks were set up to provide short-term support to people in an emergency, they are not a lasting solution to hunger and poverty, and more than three quarters of the UK population agree with us that they should not need to exist.
“The staff and volunteers in our network are working tirelessly to ensure help continues to be available, but the current situation is not one they can solve alone.
“For too long people have been going without because social security payments do not reflect life’s essential costs and people are being pushed deeper into hardship as a result. If we are to stop this continued growth and end the need for food banks then the UK government must ensure that the standard allowance of Universal Credit is always enough to cover essential costs.”
The majority of the UK public (77%) think that food banks should not be needed in the UK, with a strong majority agreeing (93%) that everyone should be able to buy enough food for themselves and their family.
To help ensure that everyone has the income they need to afford the essentials, the Trussell Trust is calling for the UK government to act now to strengthen our social security system.