Oxford Living Wage: Healthy eating difficult for those paid less

The City Council commissioned report suggests residents can only afford healthy food and 'achieve wellbeing at work' when they are paid the £10.02 an hour rate.

Good Food Oxford says its findings demonstrates that paying the 'Real Living Wage' (£9 per hour) 'offers significant benefits to employees and employers' but the Oxford weighting provides 'additional benefits'.

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The UK’s 'National Living Wage' went up to £8.21 per hour (for 25-year-olds) earlier this month.

The report found that a single full-time employee earning the National Living Wage would struggle to afford the government’s recommended guide to a healthy, balanced diet.

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Good Food Oxford manager Hannah Fenton said: “Addressing food poverty is not simply about making sure people have enough to eat.

"More important is working to ensure people’s incomes are high enough to afford to choose good healthy food, (addressing) the causes of food poverty.”

The authors' findings are based on accounts from Real Living Wage employees and employers in Oxford. They say accredited organisations see greater productivity, better recruitment, and longer employee retention rates.

The council’s Living Wage Champion, councillor Martyn Rush, said: “We recognise that Oxford must be affordable for all our residents. This report shows that if businesses across the city step up to pay the Oxford Living Wage, everyone benefits.”

The report was supported by The University of Oxford, and part-funded by Food Power, a Big Lottery Fund project.