Council secures new funding for school holiday activities

The programme will run for a total of six weeks across the next financial year – one week at Easter, four during the summer holidays, and one at Christmas – and will include four hours of support, and a hot meal, four days each week. It will be open to all families who are currently in receipt of Free School Meals during term time.

The scheme was initially set up by central government in 2018 and is being expanded across England in 2021. Its aim is to reduce the ‘holiday experience gap’ for disadvantaged children whose families are affected by increased costs and reduced incomes during these periods.

Cllr Richard Boyles, cabinet member for children's safeguarding and early years, said: “School holidays can be a difficult time for many children whose families are struggling, and this can have a detrimental impact on both their mental and physical health. This is no truer than during the Covid-19 pandemic. We are confident that by utilising this funding to provide enriching out-of-school activities and healthy nutritious meals, we can help to minimise that holiday experience gap for these families.”

The council is currently preparing for the first week of the programme during the Easter holidays. Working in partnership with local delivery partners, it is focusing on providing a virtual offer to fit with Covid restrictions which will still be in place.