Food Justice in Lambeth
Lambeth’s Annual Public Health Report 2025 focuses on food justice – the principle that everyone has the right to affordable, nutritious, and culturally appropriate food. It highlights how food insecurity in Lambeth is not just about hunger but also about access to food that supports health, dignity, and community. The report sets out a vision for food justice in Lambeth and the steps the Council is taking with partners to make it a reality.
Food insecurity remains high in Lambeth, with many residents struggling to afford balanced meals. Groups most affected include people in social housing, those with disabilities, families with children, and people not in employment. Rising living costs, low awareness of support schemes, and easy access to unhealthy food options worsen the problem. Poor nutrition impacts health across life stages – from pregnancy and childhood to older age – increasing risks of obesity, diabetes, mental health issues, and frailty. These inequalities cost the UK billions annually in healthcare and lost productivity.
The report references ways in which public health can make a difference – through supporting breastfeeding, improving school meals and promoting nutrition education – but also points to wider transformation needed to tackle social and economic factors that shape what people can put on their plates. Lambeth has led nationally on innovative food initiatives, including a fruit and vegetable on prescription scheme, auto-enrolment for free school meals, and support for community food growing. The borough signed the Plant-Based Treaty, launched recipe books for Black communities, and works with schools and retailers to promote healthy eating. Lambeth Food Partnership brings together community groups, businesses, and public services to drive systemic change.
New Food Action Plan 2025-2030
The report calls for a whole-system approach to creating a Lambeth where everyone can eat well, thrive, and live with dignity. The report was presented to Lambeth’s Health and Wellbeing Board in November 2025, where Lambeth’s new Food Justice Action Plan (2025–2030) was also approved. Key priorities of this plan include:
- Prevention: promoting breastfeeding, Healthy Start uptake, and healthy school meals
- Crisis support: ensuring dignified, nutritious emergency food provision
- System change: expanding food growing, improving access to healthy options, and embedding food justice in planning and procurement
- Tackling poverty: supporting employment, skills, and fair wages as drivers of food security