More than one in five parents in the South West say they have struggled to afford to feed their children during the last 12 months.

A survey released by children's charity Barnardo's revealed 22 per cent of parents with children aged 18 and under have had difficulty providing enough food due to the cost of living.

Additionally, almost half of parents in the region say they have had to cut back on food spending.

The survey, conducted by YouGov, included 198 parents from the South West with children aged 18 and under.

It also showed 29 per cent have reduced their spending on household energy, such as gas, water, and electricity, in the past year to make ends meet.

Extra debt including loans and credit cards were taken on by 19 per cent and the same percentage had to rely on friends and family to help them pay their bills.

Sarah Crawley, director of Barnardo’s South West, said: "There is no doubt that things have got worse for families during the last two years with more struggling to keep the power on and the fridge stocked.

"Our family workers see the impact every day when they go into homes and find cold, hungry children with worsening mental health and increasing anxiety.

"All of it impacts on children’s life chances."

The charity has been providing cots, beds, bedding, supermarket vouchers, fuel payments, energy efficient appliances, warm clothing, and even paying for school trips to help struggling families.

Ms Crawley added: "We are in the grip of a child poverty emergency and unless it is tackled now, we face blighting the futures of a generation of children.

"We understand that politicians face difficult financial choices, but unless they invest in children and families now, they are storing up even worse problems for the future.

“That’s why we are calling for the ending of the two-child limit on universal credit, and we want to see the extension of the Household Support Fund which is a lifeline for families in crisis."

Across Great Britain, a quarter of the more than 2,000 parents surveyed admitted to struggling to feed their children, an increase of five per cent since the last survey by YouGov for Barnardo’s in October 2022.

The number relying on food banks due to the cost of living has also increased by a third, from six per cent to eight per cent.