Demand for Hackney Foodbank outstrips London average

Startling figures released by the Trussell Trust this week reveal the scale of poverty in Hackney and the monumental efforts ensuring people don’t go hungry.

While the overall picture for Trussell Trust food banks highlights a 171% increase in demand for London food banks in the last five years, in Hackney demand has increased by 287% in the same period (up from 6,184 parcels in 2018/19 to 23,947 in 2023/24).

The number of children supported by Hackney Foodbank has more than doubled in the past two years.  On average, the charity is distributing more than £10,000 worth of food to people in crisis or trapped in poverty each week.

Pat Fitzsimons, CEO of Hackney Foodbank, said: “Demand for our food bank increased by 53% between 2022 and 2023 and things don’t show any sign of improving. We’re supporting twice as many pensioners as we were a year ago and many more single parent households.

“Hackney is ranked 16th in the country for deprivation and our team witnesses first-hand the devastating impact poverty has on the people we serve.  We meet parents who go hungry so their children can eat, pensioners who can’t afford the day-to-day essentials and, increasingly, we’re supporting working people who simply don’t earn enough to get by.

“Poverty is isolating and hunger has a huge impact on mental and physical health. The social security net that is supposed to support people in times of crisis is failing. Universal Credit falls far short of what people need to cover the essentials, causing huge pressure for charities like ours. Likewise, if the government abolished the two-child benefits cap, an estimated 300,000 children in the UK would be lifted out of poverty.”

Hackney Foodbank has six distribution centres open Monday to Saturday as well as the Hackney Giving Van, which takes emergency food parcels to five neighbourhoods. The charity supports around 630 people per week.  Their team includes a caseworker who helps people escape the root causes of poverty; offering advice on benefits, housing and debt.

Today (Wednesday May 15th), as the Trussell Trust releases their annual figures, they’re calling for urgent reform of the social security system to ensure everyone's income covers life’s essentials.

Almost 90,000 people living in London needed to turn to a food bank in the Trussell Trust network for the first time last year, an 82% increase from five years ago.

Experts fear current plans to end the Household Support Fund in September will also have devastating consequences.

Emma Revie, Chief Executive at the Trussell Trust, said: “As we approach the next UK General Election, we urgently need all political leaders to set out how they will build a future where no one needs a food bank to survive.

“A supportive social security system is the bedrock on which we end hunger for good. Building on this, we need much more effective employment and financial support for parents, carers and disabled people and action to ensure everyone can have the security we all need to access opportunities and have hope for the future, through more secure and flexible jobs and investment in social housing.

“Our political leaders must take bold action to build a future where everyone has enough money to afford the life’s essentials.”