Children not getting breakfast

[robvalue]

I've noticed that on some breakfast cereal boxes, there is a "breakfast club" which provides breakfast for children at school. It claims that 1 in 7 children in England are coming to school without having had breakfast.

Now, it's great that something is being done to feed these poor kids. But what the hell is going on? Surely feeding your children is the number one priority. I do understand that some people will be so financially crippled that things like this can happen, but can that really account for 1 in 7?

You get an awful lot of child benefit in England. Not just child benefit, but loads of other financial assistance, tax credits and so on. If this isn't being spent on food, where is it going?

Am I naive in thinking this is awful parenting? Does poverty really strike this hard?