Food poverty: Households, food banks and free school meals
This paper provides statistics on household food insecurity, food bank usage and free school meals in the UK, and tracks the impact of rising living costs.

A debate on the attainment and engagement of boys in education is scheduled to take place in the House of Commons Chamber on Thursday 10 July 2025. The subject for the debate was determined by the Backbench Business Committee, and the debate will be led by Sam Rushworth MP.
The Library will produce a briefing in advance of this debate, please check for updates on this page. You may also wish to subscribe for Library research alerts by topic.
This paper provides statistics on household food insecurity, food bank usage and free school meals in the UK, and tracks the impact of rising living costs.
In the 2024 Autumn Budget the Chancellor announced the introduction of VAT on private school fees from 1 January 2025. This briefing discusses the background to the government's decision and the legislation to bring it into effect.
The government met its 2030 international student recruitment target of 600,000 ten years early and numbers have continued to increase since 2020. This briefing looks at student numbers, government policy, and the economic impact of international students.