- The Trussell Trust says 47% of households surveyed at food banks during the summer owed money to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) due to loans and overpayments of benefits – this is compared to 37% at the start of the year before the pandemic hit
- Almost three out of four households on Universal Credit at food banks over the summer were repaying an advance payment to the government, a loan primarily taken out to cover the five-week wait for a first payment
- The charity is urging the government to stop taking money from people’s pockets through the winter months until a more just system is put in place
- You can help by joining the fight for a Hunger Free Futureand by tweeting the DWP Minister to ask for these deductions to be paused this winter.
The Trussell Trust has published a new report Lift the Burden revealing that one in two households at food banks (47%), already struggling to make ends meet, face the stress of having money deducted from their benefits payments by the government.
The charity says 73% of households on Universal Credit at food banks over the summer were repaying an advance payment to the government. Advance payments are largely taken out by people to cover the five-week wait for a first payment. This is because everyone who applies for Universal Credit must wait at least five weeks for their money to start coming through – the government offers people a one-off payment to cover this wait, but that payment must be paid back.
Paying back an advance payment, or repaying an overpayment after a system error, makes it harder for people to afford the essentials and can affect people’s mental health. More than half of households (53%) at food banks where someone was living with mental health problems reported they owed money to the government through a loan. This compares to 30% of households which did not report anyone with mental health problems.
The charity is urging the government to stop taking money from people’s pockets through the winter months until a more responsible and just system is put in place. This should help bring government debt collection closer to that practised in the private sector which has improved its practice significantly, assessing people’s ability to pay before recovering debts.
It is also urging everyone to help end the need for food banks by joining its Hunger Free Future campaign.
Emma Revie, chief executive at the Trussell Trust said:
“Our welfare system should increase people’s security, not suffering. But right now, the government is taking money from the benefit payments of many people using food banks. Taking money off payments to repay these debts makes it much harder for people to afford the essentials and can impact on people’s mental health – this isn’t okay.
“With the pandemic continuing to hit people’s incomes, the government must pause taking money from benefit payments over the winter months until a more responsible and just system that offers security and support is in place. This would help people on the lowest incomes to keep every penny of their benefits to help afford the absolute essentials, instead of needing to turn to a food bank for help.
“We need change this Christmas to create a system that works for everyone. That’s why we’re also calling on everyone to help end the need for food banks by joining our campaign to create a Hunger Free Future.”
You can help ensure people keep their benefit payments by tweeting the DWP Minister who can pause these deductions this winter, and by joining our fight for a Hunger Free Future.
ENDS
Contact
Contact the Trussell Trust Press Office at 020 3137 3699 or [email protected]
Notes to editors:
Heriot-Watt University surveyed 435 adults aged 18+ that needed to use a food bank across Trussell Trust food banks in Great Britain between 22nd June and 31st July 2020. The survey found:
- 47% of people surveyed said that they or their partner currently owed money to the DWP because of a loan such as a benefit advance or budgeting loan.
- 73% of people in receipt of universal credit (259 adults aged 18+) said that their or their partner’s income was currently being deducted to repay Universal Credit advance payments
Mental health: 53% of people that said that someone in their household was living with mental health problems reported they owed money to the DWP through a loan. This compares to 30% of people who did not report anyone in their household with mental health problems. People were asked whether anyone in their household had any health problems such as anxiety, stress, depression or any other mental health problems.
Earlier in the year Heriot-Watt University surveyed 716 adults aged 18+ that needed to use a food bank across the Trussell Trust network in Great Britain – between mid-January and early March 2020. The survey found:
- 37% of people surveyed said that they or their partner currently owed money to the DWP because of a loan such as a benefit advance or budgeting loan.
- 51% of people in receipt of universal credit (411 adults aged 18+) said that their or their partners income was currently being deducted to repay Universal Credit advance payments
About the Trussell Trust:
- We’re here to end the need for food banks in UK.
- We support a UK-wide network of more than 1,300 food bank centres and together we provide emergency food and support to people locked in poverty, and campaign for change to end the need for food banks in the UK.
- Our most recent figures for the number of emergency food supplies provided by our network: https://www.trusselltrust.org/news-and-blog/latest-stats/
- The Trussell Trust’s food bank network brings together volunteers, staff and supporters of all faiths and none to make a difference. Local churches play a vital part in this work, with around 12,000 churches actively involved in donating food, and providing venues, volunteers and financial support for food banks.