New research shows how Britain’s primary schools and GP surgeries are staggering under the weight of hardship as they divert resources to respond to the needs of those struggling to afford the essentials. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) conducted a study to discover how millions of people experiencing hardship is impacting key public services. Hardship was defined in the study as people going without essentials like food, heating, and appropriate clothing because they can’t afford it.
The stark results showed a widespread impact across all parts of Britain. It showed significant resource of time and money is being used to help those affected, with knock-on effects for pupils and patients not experiencing hardship.
JRF is calling on all politicians to “get serious” and understand that they can’t fix our public services unless they deal with hardship “at source” ahead of the general election.
Hardship: the scale of the problem is shocking
In a survey of staff in primary education and primary and community healthcare (for example GP surgeries):
- Nine in 10 said hardship had had an impact on their own work, their colleagues or their organisation.
- Six in 10 staff said poverty had made it harder to do their job well.
- Seven in 10 said supporting people who can’t afford the essentials was a challenge in their organisation.
- Around four in 10 said hardship is a factor that is contributing to them thinking about leaving their job.
In focus groups, teachers told of being unable to start teaching on time because they had to leave the classroom to deal with distressed parents facing homelessness or find warm clothes and food for children who were going without. They also discussed how overcrowded housing, including temporary accommodation, leaves children tired, and how much time goes into getting tired, hungry children ready to learn.
Rocketing incidences of hardship
Staff at GP surgeries described appointments being used to get prescriptions for over-the-counter medicine such as Calpol because the patient couldn’t afford to buy them at the pharmacy, or to ask for letters to stop evictions. When practices are already struggling to meet demand, staff said this put even more pressure on them to provide appointments to everyone who needed one.
JRF/Thinks Insight polling of staff in primary schools and primary and community healthcare services across Britain also found:
- On average, primary school staff estimate 48% of their pupils had experienced hardship at some point since the start of the school year.
- Primary and community healthcare staff estimated 57% of patients they had seen had experienced hardship, at some point over the last 12 months.
- Almost half (49%) of respondents from primary care, and a third in primary schools, said that they were providing a food bank as part of their service.
‘Shameful levels’ in the UK
Katie Schmuecker, principal policy adviser for the JRF said:
Hardship has reached a shameful level in our country, with almost four million people finding themselves in destitution in a single year – unable to keep themselves dry, warm and fed.
As the parties compete to lead the UK after 4th July, we need them to get serious about tackling the scale and depth of hardship which is afflicting millions and holding families back from building better lives.
No plan for our schools or NHS should be taken seriously if it doesn’t include tackling hardship. Leaving millions to live without essential items such as enough food or heating doesn’t just rob people of options or dignity, it also adds to the pressures on the services we all rely on.
Primary schools and GP services are staggering under the weight of hardship – it shouldn’t fall to them to ensure families are not going hungry. As a country we need our politicians to address hardship at source, not look the other way.
We still need to hear from all our politicians on how they’ll take urgent action to support families, as well as setting out bold, long-term solutions which ensure that everyone in our country can at least afford the essentials.
The impact of hardship in primary schools
Primary school staff report seeing increasing numbers of children who are hungry, tired and in need of emotional support because they are experiencing hardship. This was the case in both more and less deprived areas.
Getting tired, hungry and upset children ready to learn eats into resources and classroom time. Parents and carers breaking down in tears at the school gates and looking to the school for help also takes time away from core duties, with some schools creating job roles specifically to respond to this need. As trusted and visible services in the community, many now feel like the first port of call for help.
One deputy head teacher in greater Bristol said:
You feed them, you clothe them, you tell them where to go if they’re homeless. It’s literally everything. It’s not even about teaching or learning. It’s about keeping them fed, keeping a roof over their head. Writing letters to MPs, writing letters to GPs, writing letters to housing services. It literally doesn’t stop. It is a first line service because you’re having to provide that support for every single thing that families need because who are they going to go to?
More than half of staff said hardship meant there was a greater requirement for resources like staff time. Moreover:
- One third of staff said their school has reduced school trips to fund or provide support towards hardship.
- One third said their school provided a food bank.
- Four in 10 said their school has extended free school meals.
- 57% said their school offers free or subsidised food (outside of free school meals).
- 59% of staff have increased stress or low morale as a result of the hardship they see at school.
Dealing with hardship is beginning to affect all the children in the class, as teachers have to address immediate needs which meant not starting teaching on time. One staff member said:
There are classes that haven’t got a teacher in front of them because a teacher is trying to help a parent with something that’s happened.
Staff also see opportunities for enrichment activities reduced as schools have to cut back in order to fund or provide support for children and families experiencing hardship.
A deputy head in Manchester said:
We cannot provide as many extracurricular opportunities such as trips and visits as we would like, we cannot ask our parents to pay for them. It just results in our children getting a raw deal and not having as many life opportunities even though we really do try our best.
The impact of hardship on primary and community healthcare
Staff across primary and community healthcare experienced hardship impacting their work, with staff reporting the impact of hardship on patients’ mental, physical, and dental health. This has an impact on the service they provide:
- Almost half said hardship led to an increased demand for services.
- Two in five said there was a greater requirement for resources like staff time.
- Nearly two thirds said they were increasingly under pressure due to the hardship they saw.
- More than two in five said that the impact on their work of patients experiencing hardship has made them think about leaving their job.
In JRF focus groups, it was clear that hardship adds to need and demand for appointments. It causes and exacerbates ill health, leading to more complex conditions and more frequent, longer appointments.
One practice nurse in Greater Manchester said:
Problems are always worse in the winter. Especially with chronic diseases like respiratory problems especially if people are suffering from hardship and not being able to afford bills and they’re living in cold, damp houses, the elderly… everything’s kind of flaring up and exacerbating.
Patients experiencing hardship have become such an everyday occurrence that healthcare settings are having to provide additional services, with half of staff (49%) saying their service offers a foodbank. Around a fifth (22%) say staff provide for patients out of their own pocket.
One GP described her experience:
I think a lot of the time we encourage people to go to the pharmacy first for some simple treatments, but then of course patients often have to buy them from the pharmacy so it does then clog up our system because they can’t afford to buy it from the pharmacy so they come to the surgery and we’re short of appointments already.
Featured image via Pixabay
