The England international footballer Marcus Rashford has launched a new website to support children and vulnerable people over the Christmas period.

Launched with the Child Food Poverty Taskforce, the website will help families and children to find support over Christmas via an interactive map that signposts to the available local support in their area.

The #endchildfoodpoverty website also contains information on how people can offer support, either through donating money or volunteering.

‘Following the Government investment, it was important to me that we supported by communicating on the help available in local areas, working closely with Local Authorities, so that our vulnerable families know where to turn when faced with the toughest winter on record,’ said Mr Rashford.

‘In partnership with Co-op and Google, we have developed a central hub for those who need help and those who want to help. That second function was really important to me – everyone has a role to play in ending child food poverty in the UK and we wanted to support those who want to make a difference.

‘There is still so much more to be done but the least children deserve this year, after loss and disruption, is a Christmas dinner on the table.’

Anna Taylor, executive director of The Food Foundation, commented: ‘For so many families, this Christmas will be extremely precarious as the ongoing financial pressures of Covid-19 push struggling households further into hardship and force a newly vulnerable segment of society to seek help for the first time.

‘The new #endchildfoodpoverty website will be a vital resource for these families, making sure that those struggling to put food on the table can connect rapidly with local provision. More than this though; it’s a platform for a community who cares about ending child food poverty and want to work together to stop the stigma and find lasting solutions.’

Image: Jose Breton- Pics Action / Shutterstock.com.