Inquiry into the most effective ways for Western Australia to address food insecurity for children and young people affected by poverty
Centrecare and the Valuing Children Initiative are pleased to have contributed to the current inquiry into food insecurity for children and young people affected by poverty in Western Australia.
The inquiry is led by the Joint Standing Committee on the Commissioner for Children and Young People and for the estimated 103,700 children in WA living in poverty it’s both necessary and urgent.
Regular access to nutritious food is the right of every child and is essential for healthy development, however, there are many children in Western Australia who live in food insecure households.
Research shows that experiencing food insecurity in childhood can negatively impact children in both the short and long term. The impacts are physical, emotional, social, developmental, and academic. Parents in food insecure households notice changes in their children’s wellbeing when their children do not have enough food with more than half of parents (54%) reporting changes negative impacts such as outbursts or tantrums (24%), a decline in their child’s happiness (24%), irritability (22%), altered sleeping patterns (17%), lethargy (16%) and behavioural issues as school (17%).
The importance of food security for children cannot be overstated and is a human rights issue that we can, and must, address. There are solutions and a clear moral imperative to act.
“I have nothing else to say. Except that my family is low on money. And I’m suffering from not eating or sleeping much. And I’m extremely stressed about schoolwork”- 13 year old (Commissioner for Children and Young People WA, Speaking Out Survey, 2021)
To read Centrecare/VCI’s full submission click below:
The inquiry is open until 25/11/2022. Find out more and make a submission here: Committee Details - Inquiry (parliament.wa.gov.au)
