Vouchers worth £15 a child per week being provided to eligible Sefton families over the holidays

Sefton Council is providing vouchers worth £15 per child per week to families eligible for free school meals, over the school summer holidays.  

More than 9,000 families who may be worrying about the cost of the upcoming school holiday will be able to use the vouchers to buy food from local supermarkets, either in-store or online.

Cllr Trish Hardy, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing said: “Unfortunately, many families across Sefton people are still facing the effects of the national cost of living crisis and will be concerned about providing meals for their children through the school summer holidays."

“Once again, by providing those families with these meal vouches, Sefton Council can help to ease those worries and enable them to ensure their children aren’t going to go hungry.”

Schools across the Borough have been coordinating the distribution of vouchers to those families who qualify. The meals vouchers can only be spent on food and essentials and can’t be used to purchase alcohol, tobacco, lottery tickets, phone top-ups or stamps and is intended to provide vital support to families who may be struggling.

Free places are also available for eligible young people, aged between four and 16, to take part in a range of free special summer activities across Sefton. As well as sports, they can also take part in wordsearches, quiz’s, arts and crafts, problem solving and team building.

Details of the activities available through the Holiday Activities and Food programme are at www.sefton.gov.uk/haf.

Cllr Hardy added: “School holidays are meant to be fun for young people but keeping them entertained can be costly."

“These activities can help families find something that as well as being fun, can also give them the chance to learn a new skill at the same time.”

A link to more information on free school meals and how to apply for them is covered on our Cost of Living section.

Support Hub

Welfare Benefits, help with rent and Council Tax, debt advice, health and wellbeing, foodbanks & food pantries are also covered along with a link to the Sefton Support Hub.And there are details of the Emergency Limited Assistance (ELAS) scheme, which can provide a one-off payment to Sefton residents experiencing severe hardship, a disaster or emergency.