Policy 1 February 2023

Food Poverty in London

The report "State of Hunger in London" shows that the period of the pandemic saw a doubling in the number of parcels distributed in London by food banks within the Trussell Trust network - especially in the first year of the pandemic, and over some of the period over 90% of referrals were facing destitution and over a third of people referred to food banks in London are homeless, with the remaining two thirds being private renters or social renters. Working age adults make up the largest proportion of people referred to food banks in London, significantly over-represented in comparison to the general population in London. The report identifies 3 drivers of demand

• Debt and Benefit issues
• Ill health and adverse life experiences
• lack of informal and formal support