​Why 2025 is a big year for tackling hunger and hardship​

The start of July will mark a year since the UK government was elected. In the months leading up to this milestone moment we can expect a huge number of announcements on the action the government is taking to deliver its ‘Plan for Change’.  

This is also a period in which the UK government has some very big decisions to take on its approach to tackling record levels of hunger and hardship – something we know is putting unbearable pressure on individuals and our public services, and holding back the economic growth the government is desperately seeking.

Spending Review  

In June, the Chancellor will announce the outcome of the Spending Review and how much money will be allocated to different government departments and programmes. Plans will cover at least the next three years – a major opportunity to provide funding certainty in areas that are vital for preventing and alleviating financial hardship.  

One area is discretionary crisis support, which has been eroded over the past decade in England, leaving some areas without any local scheme people can turn to in a financial crisis.  

We are calling for a new, multi-year Financial Crisis and Resilience Fund. This would mean every local authority in England can provide crisis support to help people get back on their feet (preferably through a cash grant), alongside advice and other help to build financial resilience and make it less likely someone will need crisis support again.  

We also want to see long-term investment in joined-up health, skills and employment support and in building social homes, so more people have the financial security that comes with decent work and housing.

Child Poverty Strategy  

The new Child Poverty Strategy is also expected in the summer and swift action is needed. Nearly two thirds (63%) of emergency food parcels provided by Trussell’s community of food banks go to families with children, and a quarter of children (24%) aged 0-4 are facing hunger and hardship – a higher figure than for any other age group. 

The UK government must use the strategy to show it is serious about delivering an enduring reduction in child poverty. But it can only do this by paying attention to the aspects of our social security system that are pushing families with children into hunger and hardship.  

The two-child limit should be scrapped, something that would prevent hundreds of thousands of children from not having enough food or a warm home.  

There must also be a boost to the basic rate of Universal Credit which is currently not enough to cover essential outgoings.

Review of Universal Credit

The promised review of Universal Credit is another exceptionally important piece of work and ministers will be deciding the scope in the coming months.  

7 in 10 people referred to a Trussell food bank are receiving Universal Credit yet still need to turn to a food bank for support. The review must help move us closer to a system where social security rates are based on what people actually need to afford the essentials, and where caps and deductions can’t pull people’s income below a legal minimum.  

The review should also help do more to ensure people receive all the support to which they’re entitled. Billions of pounds in vital support goes unclaimed every year. Universal Credit must be as accessible as possible. And it must make it easier for people to access additional support that would give them the financial security to live with health conditions, care for friends and relatives, and prepare for and enter work.

These are major opportunities for the UK government to deliver on promises to reduce child poverty and end the need for emergency food parcels.  

These goals are not just the right thing to do, they are essential to delivering the government’s missions on health, opportunity and economic growth.  

There is no denying there are difficult decisions to make on spending priorities, such as the pressure to find savings from reforming health and disability benefits. However, any cuts that remove financial lifelines for people on already precarious incomes will push more people deeper into poverty and do real long-term damage.  

Targeted action to address hunger and hardship will help raise living standards in the long-term, keep people healthier and more able to train and work where this is possible, and improve children’s life chances. This is exactly where the focus of government activity needs to be in the coming year.

For further detail on the change we’re calling for, read our submissions to the Spending Review and Child Poverty Strategy:

• Trussell representation to the Spending Review 2025
• Trussell briefing on the UK Child Poverty Strategy 2025