Marcus Rashford’s mother Melanie Maynard has said the Manchester United forward’s motivation to ensure poor children do not go hungry came from his own experiences growing up when she struggled to put food on the table.
Rashford has been at the forefront of a campaign to end child food poverty and successfully lobbied the government to continue providing free school meals during the holidays.
He was awarded an MBE for services to vulnerable children during the Covid-19 pandemic as well as an honorary doctorate from the University of Manchester.
Rashford said his family’s struggles when he was younger had made him more determined to help others.