Some Bucks, Beds, and Herts families eligible for financial support this summer
Find out if your family could be entitled to holiday camps and vouchers
The last of the schools across Bucks, Beds, and Herts are breaking up today as students look forward to six weeks off.
But the cost of living crisis means many families will be concerned about keeping their children entertained over the summer holidays without breaking the bank.
Fortunately, across the three counties there are a number of schemes in place designed to help support families on the lowest incomes.
Buckinghamshire and Bedfordshire
In Bucks and Beds, local organisations, schools, and charity groups have provided thousands of places for eligible children and young people to enjoy a variety of free activities during the summer holidays.
The places have been made available via the Department for Education's national Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme and are open to children who receive benefits-related free school meals.
As well as participating in a range of activities, children will also be given a hot meal for lunch.
Hertfordshire
In Herts, things are slightly different but there's still support in place in the form of HAPpy Camps.
Offer by Hertfordshire County Council in partnership with Herts Sports Partnership and the Hertfordshire Community Foundation, the camps are aimed at tackling the triple inequalities facing the most disadvantaged young people - holiday hunger, physical inactivity, and social isolation.
The holiday provision is for reception aged children to year 11, who also receive benefits-related free school meals. Kids will be offered a rang of activities to do and also be given a hot meal.
Councillor Fiona Thomson, Executive Member for Children, Young People, and Families, said, the camps are going to be held at around "170 locations around the county and there are 41,000 places, three quarters of which have already been booked."
Supermarket vouchers
These same families across Beds and Herts are also being given vouchers for the summer holidays.
Those entitled to income related free school meals who live in Bedford Borough Council will get a £90 voucher in the first couple of weeks of the summer holidays. This is being funded through the Household Support Fund and will provide each eligible child with an extra £15 a week for 6 weeks.
The council expects to issue about 6,650 vouchers.
In Hertfordshire, the same demographic will receive £60 per eligible child which Cllr Thomson has said can be used "in supermarkets for food and other essentials".
More information can be found on individual council websites.