Does your council offer free school meals vouchers over the summer holidays? (Picture: Getty Images)
Many families will surely rely on free school meals for their young children – particularly during the cost of living crisis.
Free school meals are available for low-income families across the UK during term time, and can be a lifeline when money is tight – but what happens when it’s not term time?
As the 2023 summer holidays are now upon us, a six-week break in the scheme might prove a worry for some parents.
If you’re new to applying for free school meals, you can find out where to go to apply on gov.uk.
For free school meals over the summer holidays in 2023, whether or not food vouchers are available will likely depend on where you live – and what your local council has decided to fund.
School’s out for the 2023 summer holidays – so find out where to get free school meals help during the break (Picture: Getty Images)
England
According to the Mayor of London’s website, Londoners can access free food for kids throughout all school holidays until March 2024 – including 2023’s summer holidays.
London boroughs each have their own council, so you should visit the relevant website to see what support is out there.
Other councils in England will be offering food or supermarket vouchers to help those who receive free school meals during the summer holidays – often funded by the government’s £500 million Household Support Fund.
Some examples of where support is available include (but is not limited to):
Manchester (£15 per week per child)
Sheffield (£50 voucher per child)
To find out what your local council is offering, visit their official website and search for the relevant page.
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Another option is to search by typing your city’s name or local council’s name into Google, followed by ‘food vouchers summer holidays 2023’ – and hopefully the relevant result will appear.
Every council in England also has Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programmes running during the summer holidays.
This scheme aims to ‘provide support to children in receipt of free school meals through holiday periods’, according to the gov.uk website, by providing activities and healthy meals.
Scotland
In Scotland, children at local council primary schools – in years one to five – can get free school meals during term time, regardless of financial circumstances.
However, to access free school meals support during the summer holidays, you will need to be on a qualifying benefit to be eligible, according to mygov.scot. It may depend on your local council, too.
Families in receipt of free school meals can get food vouchers during the summer holidays – to help buy nutritious foods (Picture: Getty Images)
You’ll need to visit your local council’s website to find out how to apply, or if you are automatically entitled to the support.
Here are just a few examples of what’s available:
Aberdeen (£25 every two weeks per child)
Dumfries and Galloway (£90 per child)
Wales
The Welsh government has stopped its free school meals scheme during school holidays, reports WalesOnline.
So, instead of a national scheme, what support is available over the summer holidays will depend on your local council – so you should check their website to see if anything is available.
Councils that have announced they’ll offer a food voucher during 2023’s summer holidays include:
Caerphilly Council (£19.50 per week per child)
Gwynedd Council (£3.90 per day per child)
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Northern Ireland
According to the Big Issue, it looks like there won’t be free school meals help over the summer holidays in Northern Ireland.
Information on Northern Ireland’s free school meals during term time is available on NI Direct.
MORE : Cost of living: cheap family meals that will keep the family fed over the summer holidays
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It may depend on your local authority.
