Bring Back Wartime Communal ‘National Kitchens’ to Beat Food Bank Stigma By Liverpool Hope University
Above: Members of the public enjoying a meal in one of the chain of British Restaurants established during the Second World War, London, 1943. Copyright: Public Domain, via Wikipedia
Bring back wartime era, Government-backed ‘British Restaurants’ to feed those in need - and help take the stigma away from using food banks.
T Above: Professor Bryce Evans
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hat’s the view of one respected academic who’s calling on the Conservatives to act now in the face of a ‘national emergency’ when it comes to food poverty. Bryce Evans is Professor of Modern World History at Liverpool Hope University and has a special interest in the history of food. His new book, Feeding the People in Wartime Britain, examines the positive impact of nation-wide
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communal dining schemes that first launched in Britain in 1917 and lasted until the 1960s. And while the UK is not at war, Professor Evans is convinced the current cost of living crisis is deep enough to demand a new ‘emergency feeding’ response to that witnessed a century ago. He argues: “Food banks in Britain are doing a crucial job and there are some fantastic people who volunteer at them. I’m certainly not trying to be disparaging about food banks. “But with the basic food bank model, those who use them are already ‘defeated’ before they go in there. Many food banks require a referral in order to be able to access them and it means there’s an unfortunate, almost Dickensian, stigma attached to using them. You have to present as the ‘deserving poor’. And I find that extremely uncomfortable, particularly when you see that working people are using food banks. “There’s also the issue that sometimes a food bank user might not actually be able to afford the fuel bill or possess the skills to be able to cook the food that they’re given. “And I can’t help but contrast the situation now to what we had during wartime and afterwards where Britain had a vast network of British Restaurants that were subsidised by the Government and which played a key role in feeding the nation above and beyond rationing. “Yes, you had to pay for the food. But it was very cheap - there was a price-capped menu. It was cooked for you, prepared on site, and it had to be at least half-way nutritious. And it was a great way to address food and fuel poverty. I look back at that system and feel strongly that it’s something we need in the UK right now to perhaps supplement food banks. www.lancmag.com
