I don't know why they are needed. We have a welfare state, but it seems they are not as quick off the mark as they could be. Maybe because of a need to look into a claim ?
> Frontline care professionals identify people in need
Care professionals such as doctors, health visitors, social workers, CAB and police identify people in crisis and issue them with a foodbank voucher. Foodbanks partner with a wide range of care professionals who are best placed to assess need and make sure that it is genuine.
The number of people in work and claiming housing benefit has rocketed by 59 per cent since the Coalition came to power and will cost taxpayers an extra £5 billion by next year’s general election.
The figures, compiled by the House of Commons Library, highlight the growth of “in-work poverty” in recent years while wages fell in real terms and rents continued to rise. They also undermine claims by some Conservatives that benefit claimants are “skivers” because many people qualify for state help even though they are in jobs.
The number of housing benefit claimants in work rose from 650,561 in May 2010 to 1.03 million by the end of last year. The Commons Library estimates the cost of the extra claims at £4.8 billion by May 2015.