The Guardian view on England's hungry children: the indigestible truth | Editorial

A steep rise in the number of under-16s admitted to hospital for malnutrition must prompt swift action

The relief was shortlived. Barely a month ago, campaigners were cheering the success of a campaign spearheaded by the Manchester United and England footballer, Marcus Rashford. Their aim was to force the government to provide meal vouchers for 1.3 million children in the school summer holidays, and they won: a new £120m fund was created to contribute £15 per eligible child, per week. But a fresh cause for concern did not take long to arrive: data showing that hospital admissions for children in England suffering from malnutrition have doubled since last year, to 2,500 under-16s in six months.

What would be extremely worrying at any time is particularly so at the moment. Rises in the prices of some basic foods and other essentials have been recorded over recent months. Much steeper increases are predicted by retailers in the event of a no-deal Brexit: the price of cheddar cheese imported from Ireland, for example, could rise by 57%. Combined with the effect of job losses as the furlough scheme winds down, the crisis in the childcare sector and lifting of the eviction freeze, there is every chance that more families could find their finances stretched beyond their limits in the months ahead.

Continue reading...

from Children | The Guardian https://ift.tt/2C6pqco