25 July 2017

The Trussell Trust warns of school holiday hunger


As the school summer holidays get under way, food banks are urging people not to forget to donate supplies to their local centres.

The Trussell Trust, which runs over 420 food banks across the UK, says many children risk going hungry over the six-week break from school.

It says demand for emergency parcels for children rose significantly - by more than 4,000 - last July and August.

Figures from the Trussell Trust show 67,506 three-day emergency food supplies were provided for children by its network in July and August 2016, compared with 63,094 in the May and June - an increase of 4,412 parcels.

The trust says nearly half (47%) of those 67,506 parcels went to primary-school-age children and over a quarter (27%) to children aged four and under.

It says, while it welcomes the government's decision to keep free school meals for infants in England, more must be done to help struggling families during the holidays.


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