Alarming stats show children under 5 suffer from food poverty as families forced to skip meals

Alarming stats show children under 5 suffer from food poverty as families forced to skip meals Researchers raised concerns that children under five have been sidelined amid a focus on primary school-aged children, with the study finding that fewer households with kids aged five to 17 experienced food poverty Nearly a quarter (24%) of families with children under the age of five experience food poverty, according to grim research published today. Among single-parent households with children under five, the rate rises to half of households, the Education Policy Institute's (EPI) research showed. More than a third (39%) of households with a child under five and an adult with a disability experience food poverty, it also found. Researchers raised concerns that children under five have been sidelined amid a focus on primary school-aged children. The study found that fewer (19%) households with kids aged five to 17 experience food poverty than those with early years' age children. Dr Kerris Cooper, EPI’s associate director of early years and inequalities and co-author of the research, branded early years poverty levels shockingly high. She told The Mirror: "This really highlights that not only are younger children at much higher risk of experiencing food poverty, but also when we take into account other risk factors, the risk of experiencing food poverty increases even more to shockingly high levels." The study defined families in food poverty as those facing challenges such as skipping meals, eating less than they felt they should, or losing weight because they don't have enough money for food. Dr Cooper said there had been a lot of progress made for school-age children, pointing to an extension of free school meals to all children in families who receive Universal Credit, which comes into force next month. But she admitted support was inconsistent between age groups. Dr Cooper continued: "When it comes to food poverty, the focus has been really exclusively on school-age children. There's been more focus on that since the pandemic. There was this push with making sure that children still got access to free school meals. "But I think there hasn't been enough awareness of the fact that this is actually a bigger issue for pre-school children, who of course don't actually have access to free school meals yet because they're not in school yet." She added: "There is a an inconsistency in these policies where we have the greater need in the early years, the greater impact in the early years. We know it's a really important period of development, but we actually have less targeted provision for providing free meals." Dr Cooper said a minority of pre-school kids attend a maintained nursery setting where they can access a free meal if they meet criteria. The majority of children attend independent, private, or voluntary nursery settings, she added. The EPI is calling for free meals to be made available to all disadvantaged pre-school children regardless of the type of setting they attend. It also recommends widening the Healthy Start Scheme (HSS) to include children aged four and non-British children in households with no recourse to public funds. The EPI also calls for ministers to review the range of "safety net" policies to ensure all families have adequate incomes to afford essentials, including nutritious food for pre-school children. Sophie Livingstone MBE, chief executive of Little Village UK and Chair of the End Child Poverty Coalition, echoed this. She told the Mirror: "Food poverty is not simply about providing meals for children "Families need enough income to afford the essentials. As the government develops its 10-Year Plan for Britain, reducing child poverty must be at its heart. No baby or young child should start life disadvantaged because their family cannot afford the basics." Dr Helen Stewart, officer for health improvement at the Royal College at Paediatrics and Child Health, said: “If children are not getting the right nutrients, they're not growing, they're not developing in the way that they should, and that impacts how ready they are to start school and to start learning, and taking advantage of the education that they have access to. “We also know that if people are living in poverty, then cheaper food tends to be unhealthier food. So actually, conversely, food poverty can lead to obesity, and we know that obesity levels are getting much worse in the poorer parts of society, and so that means that they're starting school at a disadvantage already, health and education-wise.” Dr Stewart, a consultant emergency medicine paediatrician at Sheffield's Children's NHS Foundation Trust, said poor oral health, including tooth decay, can also arise from children eating cheaper, sugary food. Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders’ union NAHT, said it makes sense that free school meal expansions should apply to pre-school kids too. He said: “The first years of children’s lives are vital. If they are hungry and do not have access to a healthy rounded diet, this can harm their physical and social development, both at home and in pre-school settings. “These worrying findings underline the importance of the new government further expanding its moves to help families with the cost of living, and building on the previous administration’s welcome expansion of free schools meals to all children in households in receipt of Universal Credit. “It makes sense that this should apply to pre-school settings too, which would help ensure more children are ready to hit the ground running when they start school. We urge the government to look carefully at these sensible recommendations.” A government spokeswoman said: “No child can have the best start in life on an empty stomach. That’s why we are determined to reduce child poverty after years of rising hardship. “We’ve removed the two-child limit, which will lift 450,000 children out of poverty, raised the national living wage, and put over £1billion into extending free school meals to every family on Universal Credit. “For the youngest children we want to go further. We are consulting now on getting more funding directly to the nurseries and childminders supporting families on the lowest incomes, including help with the cost of food, and we want to hear from parents and providers before the consultation closes on 14 September.” The Mirror has long campaigned for free school meals for all primary school children.