Children take food poverty challenge to Westminster with new report

An estimated 4.1 million UK children live in poverty, and the Children's Future Food Inquiry has set out to document the reality of food insecurity for children and explore new solutions. 

The report What Young People Say About Food, being launched in Parliament on 17 January, contains insights from over 300 young people to explore the affect of food insecurity and children's own ideas for what can be done.

“I didn’t realise I was experiencing food poverty. To me not having enough food is my normal.”

Corey McPartland, 15-years-old

New data also reveals that a quarter of children who do not receive free school meals end up skipping lunch altogether because they cannot afford it. 

The Parliamentary Inquiry into Children's Future Food has the support of a cross party group of 14 parliamentarians and two All Party Parliamentary Groups.  It also has the support of the Children’s Commissioners in all four UK nations. It is led by Sustain's member the Food Foundation, with independent experts, Leeds Beckett University and four other organisations: Fixers, Children in Scotland, Children in Wales and Children in Northern Ireland. 

For more information:

• Read the new report
• Find out about the Children's Future Food Inquiry
• More about Sustain's work on Food Poverty 
• Check out the Food Power initiative to tackle food poverty through local community people-powered change, led by Sustain and Church Action on Poverty