East Sussex County Council (ESCC) stopped providing summer holiday supermarket vouchers for families which would have received free school meals support, after the changes to the government scheme. It says this means eligible families no longer automatically receive food vouchers over the summer holidays.
The change has been criticised by Hastings and Rye MP Helena Dollimore, but council leader Andy Woolley said the new fund set up by the council “would provide support to households experiencing immediate financial hardship and to help build longer-term financial resilience, rather than providing universal holiday food vouchers to all families eligible for free school meals”.
Council’s across the country have set up similar schemes.
An ESCC spokesperson said £7.3 million will be spent over the next year supporting residents facing financial hardship including debt advice services, community food support, the expansion of holiday clubs with meals, and help for households with essentials like food and utilities.
A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions said the CRF guidance “makes clear councils can use vouchers to support families with children on free school meals during the holidays and we have written to local authorities to confirm this”.
It added: “Authorities have the discretion to design their own schemes, within the CRF guidance, to ensure the poorest children do not go hungry.”
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