Addressing food insecurity in England

New SPHR research published in Policy Design and Practice has found that the responsibility for managing food insecurity has shifted away from national government to often under-resourced community wraparound support. This leaves local communities to bridge the gaps in support and is decreasing trust in national government. Researchers recommend that the responsibility is shifted back to national government to better support community services and tackle food insecurity. 

Key recommendations

• The responsibility for addressing food insecurity should be led by national government, working in partnership, but not solely relying on the voluntary sector
• Food banks should be transitioned to more sustainable food pantry models or cash-first approaches, backed by long-term government funding
• National government policies need to be implemented more effectively by reducing delays and simplifying overly complex application processes, particularly for school meals, Universal Credit and Healthy Start

Around 14% of UK households experience food insecurity. Food insecurity is defined as a lack of regular access to enough safe and nutritious food. Food insecurity is a significant public health issue in England and around the world. This can take the form of smaller meals, skipped meals and periods of not eating. Food insecurity is rising in England, despite a number of local and national policies aimed at reducing it.

In newly published research, researchers used a ‘systems thinking’ approach to understand how food insecurity policies interact in the real world. A systems thinking approach is a framework for understanding how different elements within a system interact and influence each other.   

Researchers combined a review of existing research with workshops that involved experts from academia, local government and the voluntary sector. Together, they co-created visual maps to highlight how different policies interact in practice, highlighting feedback loops and unintended policy consequences.

The results show that food insecurity policies often have unintended consequences because of the way they interact with other policies and with the broader drivers of food insecurity. While the policies and interventions are intended to reduce food insecurity, specific implementation issues can unintentionally perpetuate food insecurity. These unintended consequences result in a shift in responsibility from national government to local and community-based approaches and this has led to the erosion of public trust in governments and policies.

Local approaches

The findings reveal that the responsibility for addressing food insecurity is unevenly distributed across national government, local authorities and community groups. This leads to a growing reliance on limited, often volunteer-led, community wraparound support. While this may address people’s immediate needs, it risks further exacerbating food insecurity by reliance on temporary solutions that aren’t sufficiently resourced.

Consequently, the research suggests that local authorities should support the transition of food banks toward ‘food pantry’ models with long-term funding. Food banks are typically designed for short-term crisis relief, while food pantries often function as longer-term community support initiatives. Local authorities should also consider ‘cash first’ approaches which directly address poverty by increasing household income.

Community trust in government was also identified as an important driver of the success of a food insecurity policy. New policies may be ineffective if trust in government has become eroded.

While community-level support is crucial, it cannot address the major societal inequalities that need a fairer distribution of resources, primarily controlled by national and local governments.

National policies

On a national level, policies such as Universal Credit and Healthy Start can be difficult for people to access due to strict eligibility criteria and overly complex application processes. Delays in payment can reinforce a cycle that increases food insecurity.

Similarly, school meal policies with eligibility criteria have been criticised for restricting access and discouraging uptake due to associated stigma, worsening food insecurity. Therefore, many local authorities are moving to an ‘auto-enrolment’ policy for school meals as a way to combat low uptake due to stigma. This aligns with recommendations by the charities Sustain and The Food Foundation. However, to address the underlying stigma and ensure long-term impact, councils and schools should work towards shifting societal perceptions of free school meals, framing them as an essential policy opposed to a handout. Sustained funding and prioritisation of public health spending are essential to support this shift, enabling councils to expand to universal eligibility and reduce stigma.

In summary, this study highlights the need for redistributing responsibility back to governments, rebuilding trust and mitigating unintended consequences of current policies.

First author, SPHR trainee Charan Bijlani, says:

“Food insecurity doesn’t happen in isolation, and neither do the policies designed to fix it. Our research shows that well-intentioned actions can have unintended effects if we don’t account for how they interact. Systems thinking can help us see the bigger picture and can be used as a tool to build better solutions and improve public health”

Researchers urge policymakers and practitioners to consider how policies operate as part of a wider system. This means recognising that well-intentioned policies or interventions like food banks may offer immediate support, but without structural change and sustained government responsibility and public trust, they risk making the problem worse. More joined-up, long-term approaches are needed to tackle food insecurity.

Looking ahead

Researchers are building on this research through a series of group workshops with voluntary sector organisations in Westminster. These workshops aim to understand how food insecurity exists at a local level and how local services and policies interact, through group model building workshops. Additionally, researchers are collaborating with Westminster City Council to use these insights to identify and prioritise areas for change.

Find out more

Read the research: Bijlani, C., Ndlovu, D., Smith, D., Thompson, C., Garcia, L., Junghans, C., … Seferidi, P. (2025). Understanding food insecurity in England: a systems-based approach. Policy Design and Practice, 1–21. https://doi.org/10.1080/25741292.2025.2523114

Read the research briefing: Understanding food insecurity in England: A systems-based approach

You can find also out more about Charan’s research by listening to the ‘Researchers in the making’ podcast episode below. 

Featured image credit: Age without limits image library, Elliot Manches