Shocking figures in new research released by the Salvation Army show that $8.1 million Australians are feeling under some financial stress this Christmas.

The research, which was conducted by Pureprofile for the Salvation Army's Christmas Appeal, also reveals 13 per cent will go into debt this Christmas, while a further 2.1 million Australians are concerned their children will miss out on food and basic living necessities this Christmas. Also 1.9 million people are concerned their children will miss out on presents.

And Ballarat is fair from immune with hundreds of families having already made contact with local Salvation Army branches enquiring about some form of support.

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Ballarat Salvation Army Doorways program team leader John Clonan said since July 1, the Ballarat branch had given out $22,000 worth of food vouchers, $6600 worth of utilities, fuel and pharmaceutical help, had given $44,000 through Salvo Stores and also provided in-kind support of more than $90,000.

"The second lockdown we saw a lot of families staying at home and with that means that children particularly were consuming more food," he said.

"Overwhelmingly it's females and their families presenting for assistance, I'd say about 30-50 per cent more than males.

"The main issue that has caused this is financial stress, the cost of food has increased, bills have increased. What we've seen is that 25 per cent of people are new clients, particularly those on disability support pensions, those on JobSeeker, parenting payments.

"Since July 1 we've given out over 8000 servings on Tuesday and Thursday nights - that's just in central Ballarat."

Mr Clonan, who also works in preparing items for the 'Grocery Box' program said there had been a marked spike in recent weeks of people seeking assistance.

"The volunteers put together the food that is required for the families that are presenting, people arrive and we take out the boxes," he said.

"They include fruit, pasta, rice, milk, vegemite, and items like that. Coles and Aldi donate products to us that have been on their shelves but have been taken off before the used by date.

"Nothing is wasted, we get bread from Bakers Delight, Country Casseroles all donate food, we also have a relationship with Fair Share in Melbourne.

"It's really escalated the past few weeks, we were averaging about 90 a week through the year, but the week before last we ad 303 assistances, it's quite variable.

"We also expect after Christmas we'll have an increase of people as people start looking at paying school fees, books and things like that."

Across the country at Christmas, The Salvation Army will distribute more than 30,000 hampers and vouchers, give out more than 500,000 gifts and toys and support more than 50,000 families in need.

The Salvos will also provide more than 130,000 meals, more than 65,000 beds for those who need a place to stay and provide more than 7,600 families with accommodation during the festive season.

"It's obvious that it has been a huge year, with many people really struggling financially and emotionally. We want to let people know that The Salvos are here for anyone who needs a hand this Christmas," Major Bruce Harmer said.

"After a devastating year, this Christmas really is more important than ever. The Salvos encourage Australians to be reminded about what really matters at Christmas, focusing on the values of peace, joy and hope this year."

Mr Clonan said people were often embarrassed to asked for help, but he assured people that the Salvation Army was there to help if you needed it.

"Please don't feel bad about coming in, we encourage you to touch base, we'll always try and meet your needs

If you require some support, you can phone 5337 0600 between 9.15am and 2pm Monday and Friday.

Donate to The Salvation Army's Christmas Appeal by visiting salvationarmy.org.au or calling 13 72 58.