Eating one hot meal a week and relying on food banks: Thousands of York residents pushed into poverty
The impact of the cost of living crisis on thousands of York residents was made clear at a summit in the city.
Residents shared personal stories of not being able to heat their homes, eating only one hot meal a week to save money, accessing multiple foodbanks and struggling with the increase in costs for food, heating, housing and other essential services.
Meanwhile, City of York Council says up to 14,700 York households will experience poverty this year – due to factors including insecure employment, low pay and welfare reform, as well as the impact of high inflation and fuel costs.
The Cost of Living Crisis Summit was hosted by the University of York at the Guildhall. Organised by the council, it was chaired by Professor Kate Pickett, the university’s champion for research on justice and equality.
Following the summit, a financial inclusion report sharing the anticipated impact on households across York will be presented to the council’s executive in November.
Prof Pickett said: “This event has been a positive first step in the journey towards finding solutions for the people of York.
“We can learn from some of the innovative projects that have already been introduced in different areas. I hope that we can build upon their success, and I look forward to seeing some of the outcomes from the summit.”
Council leader Keith Aspden said: “It is quite clear that no one organisation will be able to tackle these challenges alone, but together, pulling in one direction, we can develop a more coordinated response to support our communities.”
Struggling with the cost of living? Here are two sources with information that could help:
- the City of York Council benefits and money web page
- the Live Well York money page