To ask why there is such food poverty.

[Helendee]

Please no flaming as I genuinely am seeking answers as to why so many children are going to school hungry these days.
This is not a critical or inflammatory post, I just want to know what’s gone wrong.
Obviously many of us are struggling financially because of Covid but food poverty was a huge problem before that.
Is it that benefit levels are too low to adequately feed our children?
What can we do to ameliorate the situation?

Someone I know had an issue where their benefits were stopped for a period of time (which turned out to be an error). During the time she missed her benefits she was forced to take out a loan to feed her children. She needs to pay the loan back and can barely afford to live.

Agree with everyone about lack of cooking skills in general; I am on a low income and we don't eat any processed foods. I learnt to cook cheaply as my parents were skint when I was a kid; how cheap are porridge oats, it very quick and easy to make. I do get frustrated when people say they can't afford to give kids breakfast.
Another big factor is time - and those working long hours are going to find it hard to cook for kids. It does take time, one of the reasons I have avoided working full time since becoming a parent. But, that has works for me as a live in a cheap part of the country. I really think we need to consider a 4 day week, so people have more time to do cooking and exercise with kids. In the long run, obesity and diabetes are going to bankrupt the NHS if we don't deal with these issues. Too much short term thinking by successive governments.

Whisper it, but as well as parents with drink and drug problems, parents with low IQ struggle.

Their coping skills - or lack of them - can make a huge difference to parenting and child nutrition, alongside parents who've been badly brought up themselves.

You can have more than one of these problems, too.

90 per cent of mothers who lose their DC to the care system have IQs of under 70, which isn't low enough to be deemed disabled, but...

People on means tested benefits means tested by what parameters - clearly not ones that work.

Why should others pay for free school meals? Responsibility for children should lie solely with their parents this is fine IF companies pay a living wage, corporations pay their tax to help fund the services we all need and there’s consequences for deadbeat non contributing fathers

The vile cruelty that is Austerity and the other vile cruelty that is UC.

Some of the ignorance/patronising/nastiness in this thread is flabbergasting.

It’s not always just money in my experience, it’s other things too. Organisation, budgeting, mental health, making sure there is fresh bread and milk in the house by Thursday, getting up on time to make sure books are in bags and everyone is fed and has brushed their teeth etc.

We all get busy and hectic but if I wake up Friday morning and find we’re about to run out of milk, I can jump in my car at 6.30am and nip to little Tescos and buy some more before it’s needed. Lots aren’t in the position to fix life’s little problems for themselves like the majority of us can or get overwhelmed by them and avoidant.

Where I live the closest shop to walk to is the very small village shop. 10 mins walk. Sells milk, eggs,papers, some snacks etc.

After that, Aldi, probably about 40 mins. The bus is £2.50 single, so £5 return...assuming I had someone to watch the kids and didn't have to pay for them too.

As it is, we have a car and have no issues there.

Yes, you can get a delivery pass etc for Tesco, but they still have a minimum basket of £40 which is quite high for some families.

My current school has a few kids that don't get fed...it is more chaos than pure poverty in their cases but obviously that is a spiral. Chaotic families don't appear in a vacuum.

I used to run the local foodbank and found similar. Lots of chaos, but that doesn't take away from the ensuing food necessity.

@PatriciaPerch

To be fair this is a real issue (although no one needs to be snide about it). All adults with low IQ are very vulnerable and parents in particular. I would hope that these families could be engaged though and supported before there is any question of children being removed into care.

What an interesting assertion that 90% of mothers who give up their children are of IQ less than 70.
Do we have any research or links to back this up?

You only need a slight hiccup such as needing medication for a child/ children a bottle of calpol and some diorrhea medication means someone is going to go hungry
Never mind birthdays or Xmas or washing machine needing repairing
A month of launderette and you're fucked

@emilybrontescorsett

Agree with lots of posters. I think a major reason is the cost of living is not in line with wages. Back in the day, and I'm not saying this was ideal, a MAN (women's wages weren't considered) had to take home a weekly wage which was at least the same or more than the monthly mortgage. So if your mortgage was £250 per month the man of the house (awful term) was earning £1000 per month after tax. This was a far more sensible and sustainable way. Of course women should be able to get mortgages etc this just emphasises the point. Likewise those who rented more often than not rented from the local authority and had much more srability. Rents were proportionately cheaper and affordable. Cooking is another issue but I doubt schools will change this. Absolutely nobody gets brownie points for ensuring pupils leave school being able to cook or do any other practical skill. The ONLY thing that matters are Stats results and core GCSE results. Parents are also to blame here. Banging on about how good X school is. They are not talking about how rounded an education pupils get. Teachers pay is directly linked to these key results. Children and therefore adults benefit hugely from practical subjects such as cooking, woodwork, art, gardening etc etc. I have seen the behaviour of very unruly, 'difficult' , almost out of control children, dramatically change when they sit down and sew or do other crafts or cook. Unfortunately this isn't enough for the powers that be.

Totally agree with this.

For those posters who grew up hungry while their parents treated themselves I'm sorry for what you had to go through.

Our childhood neighbours were such a family. The mother used to complain about having to feed them. They got FSM but never had breakfast at home and dinner was egg on toast (1 egg, 1 piece of toast) while the parents ate a 3 course meal. When the kids came to our house they'd eat a pack of biscuits in minutes.

Having a low IQ is hardly anyone's fault, FFS. It's a mix of crap education and genetics, neither of which is personal choice - an awful thing to happen to anyone.

People who battle - and lots of people do battle, hard - need support, not snide implications, which is what you projected into my post. Eww.

@SheepandCow everyone on UC or wtc gets the extra £20 currently only fir a year though. I think it will continue as they hopefully will be an uproar if they try and remove it.

Don’t vote Conservative. Child poverty and inequality have increased massively in the last 10 years.

@OnlyFoolsnMothers

Why should others pay for free school meals? Responsibility for children should lie solely with their parents this is fine IF companies pay a living wage, corporations pay their tax to help fund the services we all need and there’s consequences for deadbeat non contributing fathers

Agree there should be consequences for non financially contributing parents, both mothers and fathers.

A living wage wouldn’t resolve anything. If would just bump up wastes of skilled jobs and a living wage is subjective. People make the choice to have their own place in x area, have x number of children, work part time etc. That’s personal choice and not down to an employer to fund.

Food is very expensive. Wages are not rising, the benefit system for a single unemployed mother is pittance in the UK.
It needs to be increased in areas with high unemployment if there is nothing to work at what can you do if governments won't invest to create employment.
I think it is £125 a week with one DC it is a case of heat or eat.

@PamDemic

I despair when I read threads like this. People aren't in poverty because they spend their money on fucking zoflora.

Partly. Those people are still poor, but spending on unnecessary stuff whatever that is, can be the difference between making your money stretch or it not doing so.

@icecreamandcandyfloss society should help out our kids surely, its not their fault they exist! and they're here now so are a live issue. kids are our future and if we can't look after them we're not much of a human race are we.

[quote AldiAisleofCrap]@SheepandCow everyone on UC or wtc gets the extra £20 currently only fir a year though. I think it will continue as they hopefully will be an uproar if they try and remove it.[/quote]
Not if you're already subject to the benefit cap.

People make the choice to have their own place in x area, have x number of children, work part time etc. That’s personal choice and not down to an employer to fund well it’s supply and demand dictated but the government has a responsibility to protect society to a certain extent.
Also we can say down to choice but then we’d have no lower skilled workers in London.