Laura Braddock, a 39-year-old single mother from Wirral, Merseyside, says she has to choose between paying rent and covering other essential costs like food and heating. She rents a two-bedroom flat for £550 a month but receives only £425 in housing allowance (LHA) from the government, leaving a £125 shortfall she must cover from her own budget. To cope, she has resorted to eating inexpensive meals or skipping meals altogether. However, in January, these measures were no longer enough, and she turned to a food bank for the first time in years. She says the financial pressure is taking a toll on her mental health and her ability to care for her children. Trussell Trust, which runs the UK’s largest network of food banks, reports that hundreds of thousands of low-income families are experiencing similar struggles. The organization warns that unless the government updates LHA rates to reflect actual local rents, more people will be forced to rely on charity for food. According to Trussell, 62% of private renters receiving housing support have gone without food or heating in the past six months due to the growing gap between LHA and rent prices. This gap is expected to reach record levels this autumn. The Resolution Foundation, a thinktank focused on economic inequality, estimates that the average monthly difference between rent and LHA for a low-income family renting a two-bedroom home in the private sector is £158, with the gap reaching up to £324 in parts of London. Trussell advocates for the government to align LHA with the cheapest 30% of local rents, which they say would lift 105,000 people out of severe hardship by 2028-29, including 40,000 children. The Resolution Foundation estimates this change would cost £2 billion a year. Campaigners plan to highlight the LHA gap in the run-up to next month’s budget, arguing that it is crucial for giving low-income families some relief from the rising cost of living. Beatrice Orchard, head of policy at Trussell Trust, said: "Nobody should be forced to choose between paying the rent and putting food on the table. But for increasing numbers of UK renters, this is already a bleak reality. Keeping LHA frozen while rents rise is driving people to food banks." Governments have often been hesitant to match LHA with rising rent prices, fearing landlords will increase rents further or that tenants will move to more expensive homes. Braddock, who is worried her landlord might raise her rent, disagrees. She says that if LHA matched the local market rate for a two-bedroom or one-bedroom property, people wouldn’t need to move. "It would just mean they don’t struggle to get through the month, because the rent’s being paid," she said. A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions stated: "We’re tackling the impact of rising rents and the housing shortage with our commitment to build 1.5 million homes – including the biggest boost to social and affordable housing in a generation. Local housing allowance rates are reviewed annually, and future decisions will be taken in the context of the government’s welfare priorities and the fiscal situation."