The government’s proposed changes to tax credits will trigger a sharp rise in food bank use by working families who are expected to face significant cuts to their income, the UK’s biggest food bank network has warned.

The Trussell Trust, which oversees 425 food banks, is understood to be gearing up for a significant increase in referrals next April if the tax credit changes go ahead.

Trussell’s UK food bank director Adrian Curtis said: “When the proposed changes to tax credits are implemented, we are concerned that more working families will not be able to make ends meet and that we could see a substantial rise in food bank use as a result.”

Trussell has predicted that food bank use will increase over the winter months as people on low incomes face a choice of heating or eating. Last year, the trust saw a spike in referrals of more than 50% during December.

The warnings came as the trust announced half-year figures showing that between April and September it distributed enough emergency food to feed 506,000 people for three days, a slight 3% increase on the same period in 2014.

Delays in social security benefit payments and processing, including sanctions, remained the biggest cause of food bank use, accounting for more than four in 10 of all referrals. The “low income” category, which includes working families on low pay and on zero-hours contracts, accounted for a fifth of all referrals.

Although the trust said it hoped the relatively minor increase was a sign that more people were finding secure work, it said figures were still at “worryingly high levels” and that hunger remained a major issue for low income individuals and families.

It added that several food banks had reported that they were receiving fewer referrals because agencies and charities that had previously sent people to Trussell had either closed or no longer had the capacity to make referrals because of funding cuts.

In its response, the Department of Work and Pensions, unusually, paid tribute to charities and faith groups for their role in providing support to vulnerable people, although it did not name Trussell Trust.

But a spokesman said: “We know that the reasons for foodbank use are complex and often overlapping, so it is misleading to claim that it is driven by benefit delays. The vast majority of benefits are paid on time and improvements are being made year on year.”

The House of Commons work and pensions select committee is currently investigating the incidence and causes of delays in benefits delivery. A number of charities have submitted evidence saying widespread benefit delays cause food bank use.

The government’s plans to cut tax credits from next April would leave an estimated 3.3m working families worse off by £1,100 from next April. The cuts were blocked by the House of Lords, and the chancellor, George Osborne, faces a Tory backbench rebellion over the changes.



Owen Smith, the shadow work and pensions secretary, said: “The [Trussell] figures are deeply worrying and should force the government to look again at the real impact of their tax and benefit changes.



“Any government with an ounce of decency would see these figures, wake up to the scale of their failure and change course, especially as nearly 200,000 children were fed by food banks over the last six months.

“The Trussell Trust are rightly worried that this desperate situation is set to get even worse, as they predict tax credit cuts could result in a ‘substantial’ increase in demand for food banks – yet another reason why the government need to fully reverse the proposed cuts in next week’s autumn statement.”

The Trussell Trust chief executive, David McAuley, said: “Responsibility for helping people out of crisis must not rest with the voluntary sector alone, which is why we also need to see more high-level policy changes that help the poorest and reduce the number of people needing food banks in future.



“We’re seeking to engage politicians across parties in better understanding the reality of hunger and its causes. We want to see hunger and poverty eradicated in the UK, and I’d like to be reporting a massive drop in food bank usage this time next year.”