Exclusive: ministers want to identify policies or practices that may have contributed to rise in demand for food banks

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

Ministers have secretly drawn up plans to investigate whether the government’s own policies are to blame for the sharp rise in the use of food banks, the Guardian has learned.

Two of the most senior officials at the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) have been tasked with overseeing the study, according to a draft proposal, which is marked: “Official - Sensitive”.

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The four-page document, dated June 2018, says a key objective of the proposed research is “to identify any areas of DWP policy or operational practice that may have contributed to a rise in demand for food bank services”.

Some of those who will be asked to contribute to the research will be asked to sign non-disclosure agreements.

The use of food banks has become a toxic issue over the last five years, with Tory ministers consistently refusing to accept that austerity-driven welfare reforms, including the introduction of universal credit, may be directly responsible for the huge increase in people needing emergency help.

The Labour MP Frank Field, chair of the work and pensions select committee, said he hoped the proposed research was “a welcome sign that the government is going to look again at universal credit”.

“This is a problem of the government’s own making. If this research gives the government a chance to get off this self-imposed hook, then it’s a good thing. But God help people in the meantime.”

The blueprint for the study is set out in the leaked document, which is titled: “Update on commissioning food banks research.” It explains that the report will cost £217,000 – and that funding “has now been approved”.

It says the year-long project aims to find out how many people are being forced to seek emergency food aid and why.

The study, due to be published in October next year, will rely on a survey of 600 food bank managers and 500 food bank users, as well as in-depth interviews with a much smaller number of people who regularly use the service.

Under the heading “Factors driving the use of food banks”, the document describes seven objectives. As well as assessing the role of DWP policies, it says the research should look at “how far economic factors have influenced the use of food banks”.

The blueprint also acknowledges the risks in undertaking the research, including “negative results”.

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Food banks provide help for families and individuals who are in financial hardship and are provided by organisations such as the Trussell Trust.

Since the financial crisis the number of food banks in the UK has grown rapidly. The Trussell Trust said its 400-strong network gave out a record 1.3m food parcels to an estimated 666,000 people in 2017-18, up 13% on the previous year.

Many of those on the front line have said that government policies are behind the rise, particularly the move to universal credit, which replaces a range of benefits with one payment.



The Trussell Trust said that in areas where universal credit had been in place for 12 months or more, food banks were four times as busy as elsewhere, as long waits for payments and administrative problems forced people to seek help.

Last year a study by Oxford University academics warned that benefit freezes and welfare changes such as universal credit and cuts to disability payments were likely to drive up food bank use in future years.

However, the government has been reluctant to accept this, insisting there is no proven link.

The DWP study could completely undermine this position because the questions researchers intend to ask include some focusing on the impact of the transition to universal credit, and whether this has been “a driver of food bank usage”.

Another question states: “To what extent does the administration of benefits ... contribute to food bank usage?”

Field, a former Labour minister in charge of welfare reform, said: “The government knows perfectly well there have been real cuts in benefits that have particularly hit families with children and this has led to hardship and destitution. I hope this is a sign that the secretary of state is having a change of heart.”

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Stella Creasy, the MP for Walthamstow, an area she says has been hit particularly hard by the rollout of universal credit, was highly critical of the DWP’s position.

“Four or five years after so many of us have raised concerns, they are finally doing some research that they don’t want anyone to know about.

“Frankly, it’s just not good enough. They should be researching their own culpability in pushing people into destitution, setting rules that are impossible to follow.

“For years the government has been holding to a ‘don’t ask, don’t tell’ strategy. If they are now recognising they are a cause of the problem, the question is, what are they going to do about it? They should stop universal credit for a start.”

A DWP spokesperson said: “As we have said previously, we are currently reviewing research carried out by organisations to add to our understanding of food bank use and will consider further research to add to our evidence base, to ensure we’re providing the best possible support for vulnerable groups.”