Burden falls on charities as South Island Work and Income clients face food grant decreases

Monday, 2 April 2018

People gather for a feed in Latimer Square, put on by volunteers from a local church. More people are seeking Christchurch food bank services.

Charities are doing 'the work of the Government' as families struggle while Work and Income food grants decrease.

The total value of grants given to South Island Work and Income clients has dropped by nearly $700,000 since 2013, from $5.28 million to $4.6m for 2017.

The figures, released under the Official Information Act, show the value of grants has increased in some areas, but decreased across the South Island overall.

Emergency food grants are part of the Government agency's hardship assistance 'to help people pay for essential items or services they need urgently,' said Kay Read, the Ministry of Development's group general manager for client service delivery.

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All but one of Christchurch's seven branches gave less in 2017 than in 2013, ranging from decreases of $14,000 to almost $100,000. Grants for Sydenham clients were the highest of the five-year period in 2017, having grown by about $23,000 from 2013.

Food grants for Ashburton clients nearly halved, from $120,000 to $66,000, while growing by nearly $100,000 in Rangiora. Nearby Kaiapoi's Work and Income branch shut at the end of 2016.

Beneficiary Advisory Service (BAS) spokeswoman Rebecca Occleston said the decreases meant the Ministry of Social Development was 'making charities do the work of the Government'.

'I find this downward trend worrying as it likely means people are not receiving the money for food they need and are entitled to,' she said.

'I have heard from the food banks that things have been increasing over the last few years. It gets really tough for them because they have so many people – they have to turn people away.'

Increasing demand at food banks across the country, which primarily receive the goods they supply to people through donations, has been widely cited in recent years by the charities working with the needy.

In December, Christchurch City Missioner Matthew Mark said food parcel demand was 25 per cent higher than the year before.

'I guess the food bank is a really good litmus test for how healthy our community is, and we're seeing a significant increase there,' he said at the time.

Occleston said Work and Income clients who went to BAS often did not know what they were entitled to from Work and Income. BAS helped those who were declined food grants.

'If people are going to a food bank they're quite desperate,' she said.

'Nobody wants to go into Work and Income and ask for stuff. If they've got there, generally, they're pretty desperate [as well].'