The help is part of the Household Support Fund, which is a pot of cash that is used by local councils to provide an extra financial boost to struggling residents
Parents in Bristol with children who get free school meals will receive food vouchers over the school holidays. Bristol City Council has allocated funding from the Household Support Fund to help struggling families.
The Household Support Fund is awarded to local councils, with the money then distributed to local residents who are on low incomes or in need of extra help.
It is down to each local authority to decide what help it wants to offer – but usually, households are given vouchers or cash grants that don’t need to be paid back.
Bristol City Council has confirmed that families in receipt of free school meals will get food vouchers during all school holidays until at least March 2026.
The vouchers will be sent from your child’s school by email. If you believe you should be eligible but you don’t receive an email, you should contact the school directly.
Graham Clapp, head of revenue and benefits at Bristol Council, said: “That’s a £15 voucher per child per week for the May, October and February half terms, £30 per child for the Christmas holidays and £90 per child for the summer holidays. That works out at about 60% of the fund.”
If you’re not a Bristol resident, it is worth checking what support your local council can offer you through the Household Support Fund.
For example, Ribble Valley Borough Council is awarding food vouchers worth up to £500 to eligible households that have a combined household income of less than £35,000 per year.
You can get a £200 voucher if you live alone, £300 if you live in a households with two or more adults, or £500 for households with children.
City of Doncaster Council is providing help to households that are in receipt of certain benefits, including Housing Benefit, Council Tax Reduction, Universal Credit and free school meals.
If you’re in a household with one dependent child, you will get a £100 payment for food, while £200 will be paid for two dependent children, and £300 for three dependent children.
The council described a dependant child as one you are receiving Child Benefit for. A single payment will be made for energy bills to households that meet the eligibility criteria.
Hartlepool Borough Council is awarding £100 food vouchers to all households where a child is aged between two and 19 and is eligible for free school meals.
Households with pensioners who are in receipt of council tax support will get £100 in bank payments or food vouchers later this year.