Street patrols also report more people with mental illness and addictions. This may point to a lack of community-based mental health services to help people find and keep their housing. This is down from 135,000 people in 1998 due in part to improvements in the economy. However, it should be noted that these numbers are still at an historic high. They remain at levels much higher than before the recession in the early part of the 1990s.
Single people tend to cycle in and out of food bank use, depending on employment opportunities.
Families tend to use food banks for longer periods of time. It is more difficult for families to increase their economic stability. According to the Daily Bread annual user survey, the high cost of childcare is a key barrier to employment, especially for lone-parent families.