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Income Inequality, Poverty & Social Issues

The Fairer Scotland Duty

The Fairer Scotland Duty came into force on 1 April 2018. It places a legal responsibility on named public bodies in Scotland to actively consider how they can reduce inequalities caused by socio-economic disadvantage when making strategic decisions.

Scottish Government guidance (2021) Fairer Scotland Duty: guidance for public bodies provides a comprehensive explanation of the Duty together with useful tools to assess decision making processes.

Addressing socio-economic issues in NHSGGC

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde is involved in a range of work to tackle inequality as a result of income inequality, poverty and social issues. 

Food Insecurity/Poverty

NHSGGC’s hospital based services assess for malnutrition and diet on admission. Our Financial Inclusion Group shares information on good practice around food poverty issues,  highlighting the negative impact on health and stress and promoting community food initiatives.

Food insecurity – worrying about accessing enough food, making compromises to quality or quantity or just going without – is becoming much more of an issue for our communities.

People experiencing food insecurity face not only a lack of sufficient food, but also negative impacts on their health and the stress of being able to feed their family from one day to the next. This can also come with feelings of shame and helplessness, social stigma and isolation. Community food initiatives have a really important role to play here, as they can provide emotional and practical support as well as places for people to access food.

Find your local foodbank

For more information on how to access a foodbank, donate or help out, click on the links below.

Donating to your local foodbank

Any non-perishable goods are welcome. A typical food parcel includes – Breakfast cereals

  • Soup
  • Pasta
  • Rice
  • Pasta sauce
  • Tinned beans
  • Tinned meat
  • Tinned vegetables
  • Tinned fruit
  • Tea or coffee
  • Sugar
  • Biscuits
  • Snacks

Your local foodbank may also highlight what’s particularly needed that month. See the websites above.