OVER 20,000 children across Liverpool will continue to receive support next week as Liverpool City Council extends its meal voucher scheme during half-term.
Liverpool City Council is using money from the government’s Covid Winter Grant Scheme to fund supermarket vouchers for families entitled to receive free school meals next week.
Families will receive £15 of vouchers for the week for each child which can be used in Asda, Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons. Vouchers will be distributed directly to families by schools.
As well as families with children who are already at school, families with youngsters aged two years who are entitled to free early education will also receive vouchers – a further 2,696 children.
As it did during the Christmas break, the council will once again also extend the scheme to households with children aged under two or aged three or four that receive council tax and housing benefit support. This means a further 8,152 children will receive vouchers and these will be mailed directly to families.
Young people leaving care will also receive food and fuel vouchers as they did in December.
The council was awarded £2.4m in total from the government to support vulnerable people between December 2020 and March 2021. Over £1.3m of the grant was committed to supporting families with children at Christmas as well as during the February half-term break.
Acting Mayor of Liverpool Cllr Wendy Simon said: “It has been tough year for most of us, but lower-income families with children have been hit hard by the extra challenges that the pandemic has brought.
“Making sure that children are fed and are fed well is a priority for Liverpool City Council. This is why we committed part of the Covid Winter Grant to funding vouchers for children and young people at Christmas and during February half-term.
“The vouchers mean that families can choose their own food from their regular supermarket and be ensured that it is good quality.”
Any families whose financial circumstances have changed and who might now have children eligible for free school meals, are urged to apply through the council’s website – www.liverpool.gov.uk/freeschoolmealvouchers
