'Everyone is struggling' in area of Birmingham named worst in UK for access to affordable food

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'Everyone is struggling' in area of Birmingham named worst in UK for access to affordable food

Postby dutchman » Thu Nov 17, 2022 3:38 am

Residents in Hodge Hill are most likely to need extra support to keep themselves fed

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It's a chilly winter morning on Alum Rock Road - one of the busiest, liveliest roads in Birmingham. Home to some of the best curry houses in the city, even on a weekday lunchtime, this street would usually be teeming with life.

But as winter approaches, as the cost of living crisis deepens, the road seems quieter than usual. More and more businesses have their doors shut - with energy bills through the roof at the minute, it seems many have taken the decision to cut down their business hours.

Not only that, with household costs at an all-time high, families in Hodge Hill - Birmingham’s most deprived constituency - are finding themselves with less money to spend in the local economy. New research has shown that families here - already some of the worst off in the city - are the most vulnerable to rising food prices in the cost of living crisis.

In a recent study, Which? found residents in this constituency are most in need of urgent support to put food on the table - more than anywhere else in the country. A lethal combination of low incomes, rising fuel costs and soaring household bills have left families relying on foodbanks to eat.

"The families who live here are all on average incomes - and they’re all struggling,” says one local businessman.

"All we have here is clothes shops and takeaways - we don’t have enough grocery shops and supermarkets. And they’re all expensive anyway so we can’t afford it," says another.

This is one of the major problems consumer group Which? found in their study. The lack of a nearby budget supermarket, where prices are lower and offers more plentiful, makes it impossible for many residents here to access affordable and healthy food.

The nearest budget supermarket from here - an Aldi in Stechford - is a 50 minute walk away, which for many families in the area is simply too far. Those hoping to save on their shopping are forced to either fork out for a bus ticket at the cost of £4 - more if they are travelling with family - or drive and cover the ever-increasing cost of fuel.

"For us, we can’t get to Aldi or Tesco so we have to go to the local supermarkets - and everything is going up, it’s just too high," a resident explains. "When I go to the supermarket I have to pay for fuel to go there and come back home - with the price of food rising it all adds up."

With no other option, many families in this area rely on local, independently run supermarkets on the Alum Rock Road. When BirminghamLive compared the cost of a weekly shop from one of these stores to Aldi, we found struggling families were forking out an extra £25 a month on basic goods.

"We tell people to look for supermarket brands instead of other brands because they will always be cheaper," says Jenny Leng of Birmingham Settlement. The charity work to alleviate poverty, distress and hardship and have a base just down the road in neighbouring Aston.

She says many local families are coming to the charity in dire straits. "We’re so busy and we’re seeing a lot of the same issues like rent arrears, electricity arrears and people who just can’t afford food," she said.

Just a mile down the road at Aston and Nechells foodbank - volunteer David Fletcher is on the front line in the war against food poverty.

"We’re seeing a really large increase in demand In the first week of July 2021, we fed 53 people - this July, in the same equivalent period, it was 156.

"We know there are a lot of families out there who might be able to feed their kids, but that means the parents having to skip meals."

But as winter approaches, and families are pushed to the brink, members of the local community are working hard to make a difference. Snouber Sharif and her group of volunteers opened the first community pantry in Alum Rock last month, offering goods at reduced prices to help families on a shoestring budget.

"It's about people finding produce with a reduction of the price and educating about cooking at home, cutting down on fast food and takeaway services - these are the ways to adapt to the rising cost of living," she said.

"We do try to keep our costs as low as we can considering the current situation like pricing item at 50p or a £1. The situation currently has been very difficult on a lot of families in the community and if something like this can help a little it will go a mile."

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