Charities back child hunger relief plan

A call for a national programme to eliminate child hunger during school holidays has been backed by CSAN, the Church’s social action network, writes Paul Wilkinson.

The call is made in the latest Feeding Britain report on hunger and food poverty, compiled by more than 100 non-governmental organisations, which highlights the burden holidays pose for parents who rely on free school meals to stretch their domestic budgets.

Dr Philip McCarthy, CSAN’s chief executive officer, said: “The problem of child hunger escalates during school holidays as families struggle with the costs of providing extra meals every day.”

The report also calls on all food banks to host trained welfare- rights officers at food bank ­sessions, to help with benefit claims.

Normandie Wragg, chief ­executive of Nugent Care, a Catholic care charity in northwest England, and a CSAN member, said: “Our clients often have real difficulty trying to navi­gate the complex benefit system, which often leads to unnecessary delays, errors and benefit sanctions. The consequence is severe for our clients who then rely on us for food parcels and essentials.”