More families turn to food parcels to make up for loss of free school meals, extra childcare costs and benefit payment delays

Church and community food banks are preparing for their busiest summer yet, providing meals for children during the school holidays as an increasing number of families struggle with delays in benefit payments.

The Trussell Trust, which supports more than 1,200 food banks, many based in churches, said demand over the next few weeks could exceed last year’s record of 87,496 food parcels during the summer holidays. The 2018 figure was a 20% increase on the same period the previous year.

Emma Revie, chief executive of the trust, said: “Food banks will do all they can to help families over the summer, with many running holiday clubs to support parents who find their income simply won’t stretch to meet the extra pressure of missing free school meals or paying for additional childcare during the holidays.”

The biggest increases between 2017 and 2018 were seen in the north-east and London, where the number of food parcels distributed in the summer holidays rose by 26.3% and 25.8% respectively. A parliamentary report two years ago estimated that the loss of free school meals over the school holidays added £30 to £40 per week to household outgoings, and that more than 1 million children were at risk of going hungry.

I regularly meet parents for whom the school holiday means they must skip meals to ensure their children have enough Paul Morrison, adviser at Methodist church

The problem has been made worse by the erosion of benefits year on year, the five-week delay before people claiming universal credit get their first payment, and the difficulties of finding money for extra childcare costs, according to Paul Morrison, policy adviser at the Methodist church. “Holidays should be a time for families to relax and enjoy time together,” he said. “But for the families of over 1 million children, the long summer holiday means a struggle to afford the basics, and increased isolation.

“I regularly meet parents for whom the long school holiday means they must skip meals to ensure their children have enough. It’s not right that this can happen in Britain today.”

Darlington Methodist Circuit, which has run a school holiday project, Make Lunch, for four years, has seen rising numbers. It supports up to 120 children and their families over the school holidays. “We’re making a difference to children who would miss meals, to parents who might not get food as they prioritise the kids, and to families who need to make difficult financial decisions in the holidays,” said Morvyn Sanderson, children and young people’s worker.

At the South London Mission, director Janet Corlett said: “Destitution is creeping up on people. We’ve got kids with anxiety and mental health issues because their lives are insecure, and in the summer the pressures increase.”