Trussell: Almost nine million people across UK at risk of needing food bank over next year unless Prime Minister acts, – 500,000 more than two years ago, new research shows

Unacceptable numbers of us already teetering on knife's edge with one in five people running out of food in past year, unable to afford to buy more, UK-wide, Trussell says

Today, anti-poverty charity Trussell reports that almost 9 million people across UK in 2026/27 equivalent to the combined populations of Scotland and Wales have so little to get by on that they are at risk of needing to use a food bank. Analysis from WPI Economics shows that this includes 6 million adults and 2.9 million children and is an increase of more than 500,000 people (including an additional 115,000 children) since 2024/25.

Amid news of yet more bill increases with a further rise in the energy cap, a survey conducted by Ipsos on Trussell's behalf shows that unacceptable numbers of us are already living on a knife's edge day-to-day, going without food and making impossible sacrifices, the charity says. One in five (20%) people said that their household had run out of food and couldn't afford to buy more in the previous year, according to the new research, with certain groups such as disabled people and families with children, more likely to go without.

With a new generation experiencing hardship across the UK, the charity says we risk blighting the futures of young people.

Trussell says the best test of the Prime Minister's plan to tackle the cost of living is whether food bank need falls. Ahead of the Budget, it calls for urgent action to ensure more of us can afford at least the essentials.

New figures from Trussell show one in nine (11%) people have had to cut back on food in the previous three months to afford other essentials like their housing costs, transport to work, or their heating. Worrying numbers of parents are having to make impossible decisions with one in eight (12%) forced to turn to loans, credit, or informal support from friends or family to meet their children's needs in the last six months. One in twelve parents (8%) have had to skip meals so their children could eat or have enough food.

Certain groups, such as disabled people, families with children and private renters, are more likely to go without. 

• Disabled people- 32% had run out of food and couldn't afford to buy more (compared to 15% of people who are not disabled)
• Families with a disabled child - 49% of people living with a disabled child had run out of food (compared to 30% of families with children without a disabled child).
• Families with children 34% had run out of food and couldn't afford to buy more (compared to 15% of people not living with children),
• Private renters 30% of private renters had run out of food and couldn't afford to buy more compared to 20% on average)
• Universal Credit 60% of people claiming Universal Credit had run out of food and couldn't afford to buy more in the previous year (compared to 20% on average)

The consequences of the hunger and hardship faced by millions of people have been laid bare by the charity.  Among people who had cut back on food to afford other essentials, the charity reports:

• 82% had lost sleep worrying about their financial situation in the previous three months
• 35% said their financial situation had negatively impacted their ability to find or go to work
• 56% said their financial situation had negatively impacted their relationship with friends or family
• 61% said financial pressures had negatively impacted their physical health
• 81% said financial pressures had negatively impacted their mental health

The research shows housing costs are a major driver of hunger and hardship, the charity says. The impact is particularly severe for private renters on the lowest incomes - over half (54%) of private renters in receipt of Local Housing Allowance (LHA) to help pay their rent, have run out of food in the last 12 months and haven't been able to afford more.

Trussell says this shows the impact of the UK government's decision to keep LHA rates frozen while rents rise.

The challenges facing our communities are big, Trussell says but insists change is possible. Communities need a significant, sustained drop in the need for food banks, the charity says, a drop that shows people on the lowest incomes have enough money for the essentials.

Trussell is calling on the Prime Minister to stand by Labour's manifesto promise to end the need for emergency food and start strong in his first Budget by ensuring housing support for people on the lowest incomes actually meets the cost of renting a home.*

Samantha, from Sutton, used to work in finance. She said:

After my marriage broke down and I was made redundant from a job I'd had many years, I found it incredibly difficult to get back into finance, while being told I'm overqualified for jobs in hospitality and retail.

I've gone from having my own home to living in shared accommodation, and now I'm making difficult decisions every day about what I need to sacrifice to eat and pay the bills, because something always has to give. The system needs to have more empathy for how people end up struggling and actually listen to what they need to help them get back on their feet.

Trussell's director of policy and research Helen Barnard said:

People just a few streets over from you are sitting in the dark to save electricity, skipping meals so their kids can eat, feeling invisible and alone as they try to get by for weeks and weeks without any support.

Every day, people pull together across communities to make a difference donating and getting emergency food to neighbours and providing advice and support so that people don't need to turn to a food bank in the future. But together we can and must go further, particularly as prices rise once more.

If we don't act, we risk blighting the futures of a whole generation of young people who are experiencing and witnessing hardship UK-wide as the norm. We need politicians to take the heartbreaking scale of hunger in the UK seriously. The Prime Minister must renew Labour's manifesto promise to end the need for emergency food, start strong in his first Budget, and make this a measurable goal for his government's ten-year plan to raise living standards.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

All figures on the number of people at risk of needing to use a food bank and projections are from WPI Economics:

1. Modelling by WPI Economics on behalf of Trussell. WPI Economics created a baseline projection of severe hardship from the year of the most recent data, 2024/25, until 2028/29. The baseline projection of severe hardship has been created using PolicyEngine, a used to project changes in household incomes, costs and resources. Projections are based on OBR forecasts on average earnings growth, forecasts on social security payments, and on rent payments. The modelling takes into account policies such as the removal of the two-child limit and the uprating of Universal Credit.

All percentages on the experiences of hunger and hardship are from Ipsos:

* Trussell says targeted action to protect people on the lowest incomes from hunger is needed by reconnecting Local Housing Allowance payments with the cheapest 30% of local rents and a commitment to maintaining that link, allowing renters some breathing space', something for which Mr Burnham has previously called.

This would ensure housing support helps people afford to rent a home and nobody is forced to choose between paying the rent and putting food on the table.