Leeds Group Helps Schools Fight Child Hunger With Food Support

A community organisation in Leeds is helping schools support pupils facing food insecurity by funding free fruit stalls, food parcels, and cookery sessions for families.

The non-profit group, Rethink Food, has begun providing financial assistance to schools so they can offer food-related support such as supper clubs and grocery parcels for households under pressure. This initiative comes as growing evidence shows schools are increasingly filling the gap left by rising living costs.

Research from the University of Bristol recently revealed that schools are now the largest providers of food aid in England, with around 4,000 school-based food banks operating nationwide.

Rethink Food co-founder Nathan Atkinson said he was deeply concerned to discover that some school staff were personally paying for food to help pupils in need.

“Teachers and support workers were bringing food from their own homes or using their own money,” he said. “That highlighted just how stretched school budgets have become.”

Mr Atkinson, a former head teacher in Leeds, set up the organisation after repeatedly seeing children struggle in lessons due to hunger.

“This started back in 2014 when a child simply told me they were hungry,” he explained. “It’s impossible to expect a child to learn properly if their basic needs aren’t met.”

Rethink Food has launched a Food Pantry network, through which participating schools receive guidance and £100 each week. The funding helps cover the cost of food parcels, cooking activities, and support for families needing extra help.

Morley Victoria Primary School is one of the schools benefiting from the scheme. Using the funding, the school introduced a free weekly fruit stall in the playground and a supper club where pupils and families can share meals.

Assistant head teacher Kevin Precious said the rising cost of living has affected far more families than before.

“It’s not just families out of work,” he said. “Even households with two working parents are struggling as food prices, bills, and childcare costs continue to rise.”

The school has also noticed an increase in families asking for help with school trips, sports equipment, and basic food needs.

Parent Anne-Marie Stobbs, who has three children at the school, said her grocery bills have almost doubled in recent years.

“Food is so expensive now that families often end up buying cheaper, processed options,” she said. “Programs like this really help parents make sure their children are properly fed.”

At the school’s supper club, children learn how to cook simple meals, which they can then take home along with any leftover ingredients.

“These cooking sessions give children skills they’ll use for life,” Mr Precious added. “Without this funding, we simply wouldn’t be able to offer this level of support.”