As Christmas approaches, we were delighted with the donations made by our staff and students to Hospitality and Hope, our local food bank partner: www.hospitalityandhope.org.uk

The most recent data from the Office for National Statistics, published on 22 December 2022 is chilling, and it is worth considering this information for a few moments: the price of the lowest-cost household essentials like pasta, tea and bread have all gone up significantly in the past year, and the most vulnerable in society appear to be the hardest hit, with 61% of those in the most deprived areas buying less food compared with last year. With Christmas just days away, over four in five adults (81%) reported to the Food Standards Agency (FSA) that they were concerned about the cost of food during Christmas and New Year – up from 62% in the same period last year.

Rising food prices may even have a knock-on effect on health, with nearly one-quarter (23%) of survey participants saying they skipped or reduced the size of a meal because they could not afford to buy food, according to the FSA. Worryingly, food and drink prices are now rising at the fastest rate since 1977! Food and non-alcoholic drink inflation rose by 16.5% in the 12 months to November 2022, the highest increase since September 1977 (17.6%), according to data from the ONS Consumer Price Inflation bulletin.

Bearing all this in mind, our appreciation and thanks go to all those who donate to Hospitality and Hope on a regular basis. A number of our staff have given extra donations this year in lieu of buying each other a gift for Christmas. For this, we are truly grateful.