Tackling Food Insecurity with ‘Early Help’ Provided by Social Services: A Mixed-Methods Study
- 1School of Health Sciences, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester M13 9PT, UK
- 2Manchester City Council, Town Hall, Manchester M60 2LA, UK
- 3Salford Royal Hospital, Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust, Salford M6 8HD, UK
Abstract
Background/Objectives: Food insecurity (FI) is an increasing concern in the UK. Early Help (EH) provided by social services, based on strengths-based conversations with families, can address wider social and economic needs experienced by families living with FI. This study aimed to describe needs identified through EH assessments among families attending foodbanks, the proportion of recorded needs met, and stakeholder experiences. Methods: A mixed-methods study was undertaken using 30 months of routinely collected social services data. Regression modelling examined associations between needs identified at the start of EH and the proportion documented as met at the end of support. Semi-structured interviews explored stakeholder experiences using Framework Analysis. Results: Records were available for 385 families comprising 1840 individuals (1108 children; 732 adults). Thirty-five categories of need were recorded, with 2646 needs identified (mean 6.9, standard deviation [SD] 3.2 per family). Of these, 2505 (95%) were documented as met, and 301/385 (78%) families had all identified needs recorded as met. In the primary quasi-binomial regression analysis (n = 378), longer duration of EH involvement was associated with a higher proportion of initially identified needs recorded as met (β = 0.139, p = 0.017). Area-level deprivation was also associated with the outcome (β = −0.179, p = 0.049), whereas household size was not (p = 0.249). The positive association with duration was supported by a Gaussian sensitivity analysis (p = 0.003). Interviews (n = 23) identified three overarching themes: systemic and structural drivers of FI; lived experiences and service engagement; and visions for improvement. Conclusions: Participants described practical and emotional support gained from EH. Families attending foodbanks had multiple needs across diverse domains and most needs were documented as met following EH involvement. However, the study design does not establish that EH caused these outcomes.
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BibTeX
@article{jones2026tackling,
title = {{Tackling Food Insecurity with ‘Early Help’ Provided by Social Services: A Mixed-Methods Study}},
author = {Debra Jones and Paul Clarkson and Anthony Gilfillan and Jeff Burns and Sorrel Burden},
journal = {Nutrients},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.3390/nu18213698},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3698},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Tackling Food Insecurity with ‘Early Help’ Provided by Social Services: A Mixed-Methods Study
AU - Debra Jones
AU - Paul Clarkson
AU - Anthony Gilfillan
AU - Jeff Burns
AU - Sorrel Burden
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/07
JO - Nutrients
DO - 10.3390/nu18213698
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2072-6643/18/21/3698
AB - Background/Objectives: Food insecurity (FI) is an increasing concern in the UK. Early Help (EH) provided by social services, based on strengths-based conversations with families, can address wider social and economic needs experienced by families living with FI. This study aimed to describe needs identified through EH assessments among families attending foodbanks, the proportion of recorded needs met, and stakeholder experiences. Methods: A mixed-methods study was undertaken using 30 months of routinely collected social services data. Regression modelling examined associations between needs identified at the start of EH and the proportion documented as met at the end of support. Semi-structured interviews explored stakeholder experiences using Framework Analysis. Results: Records were available for 385 families comprising 1840 individuals (1108 children; 732 adults). Thirty-five categories of need were recorded, with 2646 needs identified (mean 6.9, standard deviation [SD] 3.2 per family). Of these, 2505 (95%) were documented as met, and 301/385 (78%) families had all identified needs recorded as met. In the primary quasi-binomial regression analysis (n = 378), longer duration of EH involvement was associated with a higher proportion of initially identified needs recorded as met (β = 0.139, p = 0.017). Area-level deprivation was also associated with the outcome (β = −0.179, p = 0.049), whereas household size was not (p = 0.249). The positive association with duration was supported by a Gaussian sensitivity analysis (p = 0.003). Interviews (n = 23) identified three overarching themes: systemic and structural drivers of FI; lived experiences and service engagement; and visions for improvement. Conclusions: Participants described practical and emotional support gained from EH. Families attending foodbanks had multiple needs across diverse domains and most needs were documented as met following EH involvement. However, the study design does not establish that EH caused these outcomes.
SN - 2072-6643
ER -