Public services are under £13.7bn worth of pressure due to the Government’s negligence in addressing hunger and hardship, according to anti-poverty charity.

A recent report published by anti-poverty charity Trussell reveals that the annual cost of hunger and hardship amounts to £75.6bn in the UK, placing serious pressure on services such as the NHS, children’s social care and schools.

While schools must allocate an excess of £1.5bn to provide free meals for children living in poverty, healthcare services are outlaying an additional £6.3bn to treat mental and physical ailments correlated with hunger and hardship.

Furthermore, the report revealed the long-term consequences of extreme hardship, such as precarious employment circumstances and reduced productivity, equating to economic losses of over £38bn per year in the UK.

Helen Barnard, director of policy, research and impact at Trussell, said: ‘With a heartbreaking 9.3 million people in the UK experiencing hunger and hardship, including 3 million children, the UK government has a moral and economic responsibility to tackle hunger, as more people risk being forced to the doors of food banks if nothing changes.’

Identifying the complex nature of social hardship, which has a disproportionate affect on people with disabilities, the Trussell report emphasizes the danger of the Government’s proposed cuts to disability benefits.

‘The UK government must move quickly to meet its commitment on ending the need for emergency food but planned cuts to disabled people’s social security risk plunging even more people into hunger and hardship’, Trussel’s director of policy, research and impact adds.

‘Slashing support for disabled people who most need our collective protection from hunger, is cruel, irresponsible, and out of touch with what the public wants. It risks piling even more pressure on public services and damaging our economy.’