On Saturday the 8th of February North Bristol and South Gloucestershire (NBSG) food bank joined the local community in Central Bristol to meet with Green Party MP Carla Denyer to discuss an Essentials Guarantee as part of Universal Credit.
The group, which was made up of people with lived experience of food bank use and Universal Credit, local advice workers, food bank staff and Carla’s team met at Imayla in St Pauls to discuss the increasing number of people receiving emergency food in Bristol.
In Bristol the number of emergency food parcels given out has increased 104% in 5 years, In Central Bristol this number is up 14% in the last year since January 2024. Of the emergency food parcels given out by NBSG food bank during this time almost a third were given to children (31.5%).
The campaign aims to turn the tide on food bank use and is pushing decision makers to acknowledge that issue is largely a financial one. 81% of people receiving support from NBSG food bank in Central Bristol are receiving Universal Credit.
Universal Credit is a Government benefit that is supposed to support those who are unable to work and act as a stop gap safety net for those looking for work. Unfortunately this isn’t the case. The standard allowance for a single adult over 25 years old is £91 a week. This is £29 shy of what Trussell and Joseph Rowntree Foundation experts estimate is needed to cover the cost of life’s essentials (including food, utilities, clothing, transport, household cleaning items).
Universal Credit has failed to keep up with the cost of essentials, especially throughout rising inflation and the cost of living crisis. The result is that many people are facing a decision between heating and eating, extreme isolation, debt and in some cases homelessness.
The group met to discuss the various impacts of this shortfall in support, the sacrifices that people are forced to make, the negative impacts on health and relationships with family and friends, how systemic issues and delays can cause stress and other mental health issues as well as mounting debt.
Many of the Green Party policies are in line with updating the social security system , including abolishing the 5-week wait for the first Universal Credit payment and the two-child limit as well as raising the standard allowance to £140 a week.
We would like to thank Carla for being incredibly supportive and willing to support our push to influence key decision-makers in Government while raising awareness of the campaign in the local area.
We will support the local community, build awareness and support for the Essentials Guarantee campaign while planning next steps to influence decision-makers – watch this space!