Number of food bank parcels distributed in the UK 2014-2025

In 2024/25, approximately 2.9 million emergency food parcels were distributed from Trussell Trust food banks in the United Kingdom, compared with 3.1 million in 2023/24. There has been a steep rise in food bank usage in the UK, with a threefold increase in the number of parcels distributed in 2023/24, compared with 2014/15. As of the most recent year, there were over 1,700 Trussell Trust food bank distribution centers in the UK, compared with 1,500 in 2018/19. 

Cost of Living crisis continues 

Since late 2021, UK households have had to grapple with a steep rise in the cost of living. This crisis appeared to have peaked in 2022, when around 90 percent of households were reporting monthly increases to their living costs, and inflation reached a 40-year high of 11.1 percent in October 2022. Although inflation subsequently came down and wages began to outpace inflation from 2023 onward, prices remain far higher than before the crisis began. Furthermore, the first half of 2025 has seen an uptick in inflation, which, although expected to subside towards the end of the year, has piled further misery on struggling UK households. 

Growing discontent with political mainstream

After one year in power, the current Labour government is almost as unpopular as the Conservative government they replaced, which suffered one of their worst results in their history at the last election. To deal with the UK's precarious public finances without significant tax rises, Labour have attempted to make reforms to welfare, such as cutting the winter fuel allowances for all but the poorest pensioners. This cut in particular was so unpopular that Labour reinstated it for most pensioners, with further attempts at welfare reform also hitting a roadblock. These events, along with a stuttering economy, have seen Labour fall significantly at the polls, especially at the expense of the right-wing Reform Party, who have generally led the polls since the start of the year.