Hastings foodbank sees ‘sharp increase’ in those needing emergency aid

Natalie Williams, community engagement manager at King’s Church, where the foodbank is based, said: “Not only have we seen that 118 per cent since Universal Credit came into Hastings in December 2016, we’re seeing it’s going up and up.”

The record October follows a record September and August.

Natalie said: “We’re worried about this winter. If the trend of the past few months continues, we’ll see about a 15 per cent increase this winter.

“The main reasons people come to us our things like benefit changes, benefit delays and the five-week wait for Universal Credit.

“But what’s also happening now, we’re seeing a massive increase of people being referred who are on low income.

“So what that tells us is that actually there are lots of people now who are living in perpetual crisis, rather than just having an acute crisis when something happens.”

She stressed, though, that agencies would still be able to refer people to the foodbank and the food would come in, thanks to Hastings people’s ‘great community spirit’.

But she added: “We’re rather we weren’t necessary.”

Hastings is one of the biggest foodbanks in the country, giving out a tonne of food a week.

Foodbanks throughout the UK had their busiest six months up to September, with more than 820,000 emergency food parcels given out, the Trussell Trust charity said.

During the six months, 823,145 three-day emergency food parcels were given out at the trust’s foodbanks to people in crisis in the UK. More than a third of these (301,653) went to children.

The trust said this is a 23 per cent increase on the same period in 2018, which is the sharpest rate of increase the charity has seen for the past five years.

The main reasons for people needing emergency food are low benefit income (36 per cent), and delays (18 per cent) or changes (16 per cent) to benefits being paid, said the trust.

The new figures come just a week after the Trussell Trust released State of Hunger, an in-depth study into hunger and the drivers of foodbank use in the UK.

The research revealed that the average weekly income of households at foodbanks is only £50 after paying rent, one in five have no money coming in at all in the month before being referred for emergency food and 94 per cent of people at food banks are destitute.

In next month’s General Election the Trussell Trust is calling for politicians of all parties to pledge to protect people from hunger by ensuring everyone has enough money for the basics.

It said it wants to see the ending the five-week wait for Universal Credit, benefit payments to cover the cost of living, and investment in local emergency support for people in crisis.

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