Thousands of emergency food parcels were handed out in St Helens in recent months, new figures show.

Food bank network Trussell said the number of people still facing hunger and hardship across the UK remains "heartbreaking".

The charity reported handing out 4,052 emergency food parcels from five food banks in St Helens between April and September.

It was down from 5,241 parcels during the same period in 2023, but an increase from 3,940 five years ago.

The charity reported its community of food banks gave out just over 1.4 million emergency food parcels across the UK between April and September this year.

Although it was a 4% fall on the same period the year before, it was 69% higher than five years prior.

Of the parcels, 508,000 were provided for children facing hunger across the UK. This included 1,375 in St Helens.

Trussell said possible reasons for the slight dip in demand this year could include a "gradual slowdown" in rising food and energy costs, as well as the Local Housing Allowance being unfrozen in April.

Despite the fall, chief executive of Trussell Emma Revie said the number of people still facing hunger and hardship across the UK is "heartbreaking".

She added: "This cannot go on and we refuse to stand by while so many of us are pushed to the brink, left without enough money to live on.

"Our food banks are a lifeline, offering a warm welcome and space to be heard. They need everyone to play their part to move us towards ending the need for emergency food in the UK."

The charity said the majority of food parcels (63%) were distributed to families with children.

It added more than 277,000 people visited a food bank in the Trussell community for the first time between April and September.

Ms Revie said: "The UK Government was elected with a manifesto pledge to end the need for emergency food and the time to act is now.

"There have been promising steps, but we need a clearer plan with more decisive action to invest in our social security system, if we are to end hunger once and for all."

A government spokesperson said: "The mass dependence on food banks is unacceptable – that’s why we’ve extended the Household Support Fund again to help struggling families with the cost of essentials.

"Alongside this, we are increasing the National Living Wage, uprating benefits and helping over 1 million households by introducing a fair repayment rate on Universal Credit deductions, while our Child Poverty Taskforce develops an ambitious strategy to give all children the best start in life."