SOME 41% OF parents have said they had to skip meals or reduce portion sizes last year so that their children would have enough to eat.

The 41% figure of 2023 is a 12% increase on the previous year.

That’s according to the latest Food Insecurity Research launched today by children’s charity Barnardos.

A nationally representative sample of 1,000 adults aged over 18 were interviewed last November as part of the research.

This research also found that 24% of parents said they had to borrow money to feed their child last year, up 8% on the 16% figure in 2022.

Meanwhile, 12% of parents used a food bank last year, and 26% felt they didn’t have enough food to feed their children.

Parents have also reported cutting back spending on other things to afford food.

For example, 48% have cut back on clothes spending, 54% of parents have reduced spending on their own hobbies, while 21% cut back spending on their children’s activities to afford food.

A quarter of parents also said they reduced spending on medical costs to afford food for their family.

And while 27% of parents said they have never had to cut down on spending elsewhere to afford food costs, this was a considerable drop of 9% when compared to 2022’s figure of 36%.

Barnardos also found that more parents are worrying about their ability to provide their children with enough food.

Some 45% of parents interviewed in November 2023 said they either always or sometimes worried about having enough food for the family.

Of these parents, half are “stressed”, more than a quarter (26%) say they feel “guilty” and 17% are afraid to ask for help.

The survey also reveals an increase in focusing on providing healthy eating options, with close to nine in ten (88%) saying that healthy or nutritious food is important in their decision-making, up from 81% in 2022.

More than three-quarters (76%) of parents said their family always or mostly eat a main daily meal together, and more than nine in ten parents (92%) aim to have mostly home cooked meals.

And in terms of food preparation, 83% said they mostly cook meals from scratch and a similar number (82%) mostly or always include fruit or vegetables in their meals.

More than 9 out of ten parents (94%) said they aim to give their children fresh fruit and vegetables every day.

Barnardos CEO Suzanne Connolly said the survey reflects what the children’s charity is seeing on the ground every day.

“Parents are being faced with difficult decisions to make for their families more frequently than ever,” said Connolly.

“A lack of nutritious meals has an impact on the emotional and mental well-being of both child and parent for a long time to come. Because childhood lasts a lifetime.”

In light of the findings, Barnardos has called on the government to extend the hot schools meals programme to secondary schools and to pilot out of term time and weekend provision.

It also called for additional supports to families on low incomes, increased targeted support in the next Budget, and the establishment of a “government action plan on food insecurity with specific targets”.

It’s also called for a decision to be provided within 48 hours for families who apply for an additional needs payment where extra support is needed to provide children with sufficient food.