In the atrium (on photography stands), we will be launching Everyone Needs Food, a collaborative exhibition by photographer Jane MacNeil, developed through University of Liverpool research, exploring how community food support in Liverpool reflects the realities of cost-of-living pressures, resilience, and lived experience to spark conversation on food insecurity.
Everyone Needs Food is a collaborative exhibition by Liverpool photographer Jane MacNeil, developed as part of the ‘Supporting Households in Crisis’ research project funded by the NIHR School for Public Health Research, led by Cat Jackson, a Research Fellow at the University of Liverpool. The research examines how the Household Support Fund, a government scheme aimed at providing cost-of-living support, is being used across four high-deprivation local authorities in Northwest England: Liverpool, Blackpool, Knowsley and Manchester.
This exhibition focuses on Liverpool, informed by visits to food support services and interviews with residents, local organisations, and the council. The research is ongoing; the artwork is a social commentary illustrating some of the current support available within communities, by organisations receiving Household Support Fund. This exhibition is intended to act as a conversation starter around food insecurity, locally and nationally. Themes include despair, welfare support, community resilience and lived experience, with the exhibition intended to engage communities, practitioners, and policymakers alike. Food for thought.
Jane MacNeil is a photographer born and based in Liverpool. Photographing mostly on the streets of her home city, she has exhibited across the UK and was a recipient of Open Eye Gallery’s 2023 Liverpool City Region Photo Award. She’s a regular commissioned contributor to editorials and has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, Le Monde, The Guardian and The Sunday Times.
Cat Jackson is a qualitative researcher at the University of Liverpool, with a diverse and unconventional career pathway into public health research. Her research focuses on tackling health inequalities and food insecurity. Cat is committed to making a positive change to public health, by engaging with communities in creative ways to ensure lived experience shapes and informs research.
Speeches will be happening at 5:30pm.