Food bank use within the UK has soared by greater than 50 per cent over the past five years, raising fresh concerns over the effectiveness of Universal Credit and wider welfare reforms in addressing the growing poverty crisis.
According to figures published by the Trussell Trust, a record 2.9 million emergency food parcels were distributed between April 2024 and March 2025 – such as one parcel every 11 seconds.
The charity warned that upcoming cuts to welfare, including changes to disability advantages, risk worsening the situation and entrenching hardship for a whole bunch of 1000’s of vulnerable households.
“This UK government will fail to deliver on its promise to enhance living standards for us all unless it rows back on its harmful policy selections on disability advantages and housing support,” said Emma Revie, Chief Executive of the Trussell Trust. She urged ministers to point out “greater ambition on areas just like the upcoming child poverty strategy and the long run of local crisis support”.
The data also shows a 46 per cent increase in food bank use amongst families with children since 2019/20, and a 32 per cent rise amongst households with children under five. Revie described the findings as a “wake-up call” and called for hunger and hardship to be prioritised in public policy. “Without motion, [the government] risk leaving a legacy of rising food bank need and child poverty,” she warned.
Despite the federal government’s assurances that welfare reform is “changing lives for the higher”, many remain unconvinced that Universal Credit is serving its intended purpose. A government spokesperson said: “We are reforming the broken welfare system we inherited so we are able to get people into good, secure jobs, while all the time protecting those that need it most.”
The spokesperson added that as a part of their “Plan for Change,” the federal government is extending the Household Support Fund, launching 750 breakfast clubs, and implementing changes to Universal Credit to supply a £420 annual boost to over a million households.
However, critics argue that these measures are inadequate within the face of rising demand and worsening inequality.
Neil Coyle, Labour MP and member of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Food Banks, acknowledged a slight year-on-year improvement – a reported eight per cent drop in need in comparison with last yr – but stressed that “there’s rather a lot more work to do”.
“When Labour last left office, there have been only about 40,000 people using food banks within the country. That had reached 1.8 million by the point we regained office,” said Coyle. “It pours shame over the past government.”
He also highlighted growing concern amongst Labour MPs over plans to scale back support for disabled people, saying it was “not exactly a state secret” that there may be “a number of Labour discomfort” concerning the impact of planned changes to Personal Independence Payments.
Andy McDonald MP described the figures as “a stain on past governments” and said they reflect “the size of the cost-of-living crisis and problem of poverty within the country”.
He called for urgent motion: “It is the Labour government’s job to alleviate poverty, particularly for kids, including ending reliance on food banks, and we urgently need the kid poverty strategy delivered as soon as possible.”
McDonald also criticised cuts to winter fuel allowances, unresolved issues around WASPI pensions, and welfare policies that he said have reduced incomes and “support for the federal government”. He added, “The government must urgently resolve to pause and rethink its cuts to PIP and Universal Credit if we’re to alleviate poverty and produce down food bank use.”
Chancellor Rachel Reeves has responded to the backlash, telling LBC: “We all the time take heed to our voters, to our constituents, and I do understand the concerns that some people have concerning the level at which the Winter Fuel Payment is removed.”
Still, food bank reliance is rising at an alarming rate, and charities fear the situation could worsen. The Trussell Trust and MPs from across the political spectrum proceed to press for a comprehensive strategy to scale back poverty, ensure a stronger safety net, and ultimately remove the necessity for food banks altogether.
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