Survey finds 63% of parents are concerned[1] about cost-of-living this summer 

• Ahead of the upcoming school holidays, BBC Children in Need and Asda have commissioned a piece of research exploring how parents and children are feeling about the summer holidays
• Key findings include 3 in 5 (63%) of parents of children aged 11-18 being concerned[2] about putting food on the table over the school holidays and a quarter (25%) of children aged 11-18  worrying at least once a week[3] about having enough food to eat
• To help support families across the UK Asda has announced their extension of their £1 meals for children until the end of the year.

Monday 10^th July 2023 –

BBC Children in Need and Asda have today launched Fuelling Potential – a new campaign to ensure no child is held back by food insecurity. Over the next three years Asda & BBC Children in Need aim to change the lives of 100,000 children by helping to make sure they have access to nutritious meals while having fun at BBC Children in Need funded holiday sessions that help to boost their mental health and physical wellbeing. The campaign is part of Asda’s broader Better Starts campaign, which aims to improve outcomes for five million young people in five years.

As part of the campaign, BBC Children in Need have released findings of a new Censuswide survey which sheds light on how children and their parents are feeling in the lead up to the summer holidays, about food insecurity and their ability to entertain their children throughout the holidays.

The nationwide survey[4] found that:

• 79% of parents surveyed say that rising costs are likely[5] to affect their plans this summer
• 63% of parents surveyed are concerned[6] about being able to provide food for the family this summer
• 66% of parents surveyed have cut down on spending on activities and trips due to the rise in the cost of living
• 63% of parents surveyed have changed the type of food they buy
• A quarter of children surveyed (25%) worry at least once a week[7] about having enough food to eat
• 1 in 5 (22%) of children surveyed say they have missed or had a smaller meal at least once[8] in the last month because their family did not have enough food

BBC Children in Need’s Chief Executive, Simon Antrobus said: “We are enormously grateful to our longstanding partner, Asda, for their continued support and their commitment to making a difference to young lives. Over the next three years Fuelling Potential will help us support even more local charities and projects working to combat food insecurity in communities across the UK, helping more children and young people to thrive and be the best they can be.”

As part of the Fuelling Potential campaign, Asda will be offering £1 meals to all children who visit the Asda café throughout the school holidays this summer and half price adult meals from 3pm each day. Throughout the holidays selected Asda Stores will be hosting various Pudsey Themed activities and summer clubs.

Jo Warner, Senior Director of Corporate Responsibility & ESG at Asda said: “We know this year will be particularly tough for families facing increased costs over the Summer holiday period, so we’re delighted to partner with BBC Children in Need to provide meals and activities over the holidays. In addition low-cost meals will be available in Asda cafés throughout the Summer, with a family of four being able to access a hot, nutritious meal for as little as £8.50.”

Supporting the campaign, Rachel Stevens, said: “It is so important that children and young people aren’t held back by food insecurity, which is why I’m delighted to be supporting BBC Children in Need and Asda’s Fuelling Potential campaign. Providing children with a positive start in life is key to their development and overall wellbeing and ensuring their basic needs are met with a nutritious meal helps them to thrive. I’m calling on families, colleagues, and customers to get behind this campaign and help make a difference to the lives of vulnerable young people in local communities across the UK.”

Asda Community Champion, Joanne Mottershead from the Ashton-under-Lyne store recently visited Ashton Youth Project to see how funding makes a difference to local youngsters. Ashton Youth Project receives funding from BBC Children in Need to provide a youth club for children and young people living locally. Attending the project enables the children to develop new skills, improve their confidence and self esteem and improve their physical health and wellbeing. They’re able to take part in fun activities, make new friends and enjoy food and healthy snacks.

Rehna Yaseen, Head of Youth & Community at Ashton Youth Club said: “With  funding from BBC Children in Need we’re able to provide a crucial service that gives children and young people a safe place to go, where they can have fun with their friends, whilst enjoying a healthy meal too. The Fuelling Potential campaign is a brilliant initiative which will help other projects like ours give more children and young people the opportunity to reach their potential.”

With thanks to the UK public, BBC Children in Need is currently funding 130 projects to a value of £6.6m that are supporting children and young people through food insecurity. Through the Fuelling Potential campaign with Asda, money raised for BBC Children in Need will go on to support even more projects working to combat food insecurity.

To find out more information about the campaign, visit CCFB | 2022 | Better Lives | Children in Need (asda.com) or for further information on Pudsey Clubs speak to your local Asda Community Champion.

ENDS

About BBC Children in Need

BBC Children in Need believe every child and young person deserves the opportunity to thrive and be the best they can be.

BBC Children in Need’s ambition is to create lasting, positive change across the UK for the children and young people who need it most. Together with the BBC and partners, BBC Children in Need aim to inspire the nation in support of their work.

BBC Children in Need’s 1,800 local charities and projects work tirelessly in every corner of the UK to help children & young people overcome the additional challenges they currently face, including supporting children and young people living in poverty, providing emergency support to families in crisis, providing comfort to children feeling sad, lost and alone, helping children overcome social injustice and supporting children to feel safe and secure again.

Further information can be found at www.bbcchildreninneed.co.uk

About Asda

Founded in the 1960s in Yorkshire, Asda is one of Britain’s leading retailers and helps customers save.

ASDA was founded in 1965 through the merger of the Asquith family grocery business with the Associated Dairies company and its name is derived from this merger.

Headquartered in Leeds, ASDA is the UK’s third-largest supermarket by market share, employing more than 140,000 colleagues and serving over 18m customers every week in its 633 stores and online via www.ASDA.com  Its George clothing division, which launched in 1989 and is based in Leicestershire, is the UK’s second-largest clothing retailer by volume.

ASDA has a long heritage in providing customers with low prices and in June 2021 was crowned the UK’s lowest-priced supermarket by the Grocer magazine for the 24^th consecutive year.

In October 2020, ASDA was acquired from Walmart by the Issa brothers and TDR Capital.

[1] ‘Very concerned’ and ‘Quite concerned’ responses combined in answer to the question; ‘How concerned, if at all, do you feel about being able to afford food over the summer holidays?’

[2] ‘Very concerned’ and ‘Quite concerned’ responses combined.

[3] ‘Everyday’, ‘2-6 times a week’ and ‘Once a week’ responses combined.

[4] [4] Total sample size was 2,505 parents of children aged 11-18 and their 2,505 children aged 11-18. Fieldwork was undertaken between 14^th June 2023 –  19^th June 2023. The survey was carried out online. Censuswide abide by and employ members of the Market Research Society which is based on the ESOMAR principles and are members of The British Polling Council.

[5] ‘Very likely’ and ‘Somewhat likely’ responses combined.

[6] ‘Very concerned’ and ‘Quite concerned’ responses combined.

[7] ‘Everyday’, ‘2-6 times a week’ and ‘Once a week’ responses combined.

[8] ‘1-2 times’ and ‘3 or more times’ responses combined.