Forest of Dean District Council to continue supporting eligible families unable to access free school meals
Following a successful scheme run earlier this year, Forest of Dean District Council will be writing to eligible families with children outside of the age range for free school meals to offer support with buying food, helping some of the local families most in need.
Deputy Leader of the Council and Cabinet Member for Communities, Paul Hiett, said, “Following the success of the initiative at the start of the year, it is great that we are able to provide further support for those that need it most.
“We are hoping that these vouchers will help to ease the burden for families with children who are unable to take advantage of free school meal entitlement during what continues to be a challenging time for many as we recover from the pandemic.
“If you have received a letter from us about the vouchers, please don’t forget to respond and claim them, as you have until Friday 17th September.”
The vouchers are available following an extension of the Covid local support grant from the Department for Work and Pensions. Working in partnership with Gloucestershire County Council, the Forest of Dean District Council is helping to provide a support package approaching £64,000 for vulnerable households with children in the area.
The 671 households in the Forest of Dean that are eligible for the vouchers are those in receipt of council tax support, with preschool aged children and/or children aged 16-19 that have since left secondary school. These households were selected as they have children who are unable to claim free school meals.
Letters were sent to the eligible families on 6th September, and they will have until 17th September to respond and claim their voucher. Each family will be able to claim a voucher worth £95 at a supermarket of their choice from Asda, Morrisons, Sainsbury’s or Tesco.
This initiative mirrors a similar scheme at the beginning of 2021, where 479 households received supermarket vouchers to help cover the cost of food and supplies.