Written question WQ91076

A decade of austerity, a botched Brexit, and the disastrous Truss mini-budget have driven record numbers of people into food poverty.

Since 2019, the Welsh Government has provided £18.85 million to support efforts to tackle food poverty, including £2 million this financial year. The funding is supporting community food organisations to overcome barriers to accessing, storing and distributing additional supplies of good quality food and other essential goods which support well-being, healthy diets and personal dignity.

This includes £2.5 million funding that we have allocated previously to pump prime the development of cross-sector food partnerships in each local authority area to help tackle the root causes of food poverty. The funding is supporting joint working between local authorities and partners such as Public Health Wales, Local Health Boards, public sector bodies and social enterprises, third sector organisations, businesses and academic institutions and organisations such as housing associations and advice services. It is helping these multi-agency partnerships to understand and respond local need in a strategic, joined up way.

We are also taking steps to support people to maximise their incomes. All Local Authorities in Wales have signed up to our Charter for the Delivery of Welsh Benefits to help increase awareness and take-up of the financial support that people are entitled to.

In addition, everyone accessing a Single Advice Fund service is offered a welfare benefit entitlement check, regardless of the reason they were seeking advice. Since January 2020, the Single Advice Fund services have supported people in Wales to claim £132.9 million of additional income, helping them to become more financially resilient and supporting local economies where the money is spent.