Hunger and Housing Insecurity

The Silent Struggle in Schools

It’s hard to focus on multiplication tables or essays when your stomach growls or you don’t know where you’ll sleep tonight. Yet thousands of students in Canada face hunger and housing insecurity daily. These aren’t just “outside of school” issues—they walk right into the classroom.

How It Shows Up

• Attendance: Frequent absences when families move between shelters, relatives, or temporary housing.
• Performance: Hunger and fatigue make concentration, memory, and motivation nearly impossible.
• Wellbeing: The stress of uncertainty erodes confidence and can trigger anxiety or depression.

Why Schools Can’t Ignore It

Schools often serve as the most consistent point of contact for vulnerable youth. Breakfast programs, food banks, and quiet spaces for rest are more than kindness—they’re survival tools. But they’re patchwork solutions to systemic gaps in housing and income security.

What Can Be Done

• Nutrition programs: Expand free meals to cover breakfast, lunch, and snacks without stigma.
• Housing partnerships: Link schools with local housing agencies to support families before crisis hits.
• Policy action: Move beyond charity toward guaranteed rights to food and housing.

Questions for Discussion

• Should schools be responsible for ensuring students have food and shelter, or is that beyond their scope?
• How can we remove stigma for students who rely on meal programs or housing support?
• What policies would make the biggest difference for ending hunger and housing insecurity among youth?