Children bear the brunt of cost-of-living crisis, going entire days without food - Almost 9 in 10 parents going without food so kids can eat, over one third can't afford doctors for kids and a shocking 1 in 5 say their children have gone without food for a
The Salvation Army
Children bear the brunt of cost-of-living crisis, going entire days without food
Almost 9 in 10 parents going without food so kids can eat, over one third can’t afford doctors for kids and a shocking 1 in 5 say their children have gone without food for a whole day, new Salvos research reveals
The Salvation Army today launched their annual Red Shield Appeal and warned that the need is growing, as a new survey of Salvos clients reveals 1 in 5 (22%) parents saying their children went without food for an entire day in the past 12 months.
The cost-of-living crisis is pushing families to breaking point, with over 4 in 5 (86%) parents saying they went without food in the past 12 months so their kids could eat and one third (33%) saying they faced this daily.
Further, medical support and other essentials for children have proved too expensive for many of Australia’s hardest hit. Over one third (36%) of parents surveyed couldn’t afford to visit a doctor, dentist or optometrist when their children needed it, almost one quarter (24%) couldn’t afford their children’s prescription medication and 41% of parents with infants couldn’t afford essentials like formula and nappies.
“It is truly heartbreaking to think that our community’s most innocent and vulnerable, our children, are the ones bearing the brunt of the relentless cost-of-living crisis Australia once again finds itself in. No parent should have to make the impossible decision of choosing between feeding their child or taking them to the doctor, but we are seeing this crisis amongst more and more families across the country,” says Major Bruce Harmer from The Salvation Army.
The Salvation Army’s Red Shield Appeal launched today, with the goal of raising $41 million by June 30 to fund the Salvos’ vital work in areas such as homelessness, family and domestic violence, youth, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, financial hardship and much more.
“Our research surveyed 4,421 people who had reached out to The Salvos for emergency relief assistance. These are the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in our society, and it is our privilege to stand alongside them in their time of need, with 90% of those surveyed saying they wouldn’t have managed without the Salvos,” adds Major Harmer.
“But we can’t do this alone. You can be the hope that our community desperately needs right now, so please support our Red Shield Appeal this year.”
Across Australia last year, through The Salvation Army’s network of over 400 centres and 2,000 services, the Salvos provided:*
- Assistance to one person every 17 seconds
- More than 1.74 million sessions of care to over 228,000 people in need
- Over 1 million nights of safe accommodation
- More than 1.4 million meals to those who accessed our homelessness services.
To donate to The Salvation Army’s Red Shield Appeal, or if you need support from the Salvos, visit salvationarmy.org.au or call 13 SALVOS. You can also donate at any Salvos Store.
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For more information, please contact The Salvation Army’s Media Relations Department on (02) 94663143
* The Salvation Army Annual Report 2025