Dear John

As you will probably know, Church Action on Poverty has been a leading partner in the End Hunger UK campaign over the last few years. We're very grateful to our supporters for how you've got actively involved in the campaign with us.

We wanted to share with you this announcement from the partners in the End Hunger UK coalition:

End Hunger UK is in the process of reviewing our strategy and plans. The political context has changed, and many of the organisations which are partners in End Hunger are adjusting their plans and ways of working to reflect it. We are therefore taking time to review the partnership that drives End Hunger UK, and refresh our approach.

We will make an announcement soon to let all our supporters know what we decide. In the meantime, we’d like to take a moment to reflect on all we have achieved together in End Hunger UK.

Working for a UK where no one has to go to bed hungry

Over the past three years, we have achieved notable successes, not least:

  • A growing recognition by charities and the public that the root causes of hunger are insufficient household income and an inadequate social safety net.
  • A commitment by the UK Government to measure household food insecurity.  The first data is currently being collected, and due for publication in the first quarter of 2021. This was confirmed by the new Government last month.
  • The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan also adopting this commitment as a flagship policy in the Greater London Authority’s refreshed London Food Strategy.
  • The Government providing £2m in funding for school holiday food and activity programmes.  A further £9m was committed to the programme for 2020 last month.
  • An extra £1.7 billion of measures announced in the 2018 Budget because of greatly increased awareness of the impact of Universal Credit on family incomes.
  • Significant collaborative action between partners, led by Sustain, to highlight the threat to household food insecurity from a no-deal Brexit, wining £2m from Welsh and Scottish Governments (but not Westminster) to help buy food for the most vulnerable.
  • A marked shift in the approaches taken by influential End Hunger UK partner organisations, based on our common understanding of the unique role and strengths of each in stimulating public and parliamentary recognition and achieving change. 
    • The Trussell Trust has moved from being a delivery-focused food bank network, towards being an advocate for people experiencing financial and personal crisis, vocally campaigning for ‘upstream’ measures such as an end to the five-week wait on Universal Credit.
    • The Independent Food Aid Network (IFAN) has established itself as a vocal and effective contributor to the debate, providing a fuller picture of the extent and depth of need across the UK, as well as a channel for the voices of some of the most marginalised communities.
    • Church Action on Poverty has developed a high level of expertise on involving ‘experts by experience’ in advocacy and decision-making, and has helped many more people experiencing food insecurity to voice concerns to those in a position to make a difference.
    • Nourish Scotland, working with Oxfam GB, the Poverty Alliance and Child Poverty Action Group Scotland, has greatly developed its Menu for Change approach, working in locality to develop an effective whole-systems-based response to food poverty and vulnerability.
    • The Food Foundation has established the Children’s Future Food Inquiry, influencing decision-makers by bringing voices and concerns of young people to the fore.
    • Sustain has built momentum for notable changes within London, the Sustainable Food Cities Network and Food Power network, shifting the emphasis of local authority and community responses to those that look ‘Beyond the Food Bank’.
    • Over 18,000 individuals and 140 groups have taken action as part of End Hunger UK: signing petitions, writing to their MPs, attending conferences, or organising photo stunts and other events.

The work to create a society where everyone has access to good food, and no one has to go to bed hungry, will continue. We’ll share more news soon.

Best wishes

Niall Cooper
Director of Church Action on Poverty and chair of End Hunger UK

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