Free school meals vouchers set to decrease for parents in Cambridgeshire
The government are expected to stop funding the scheme in March
Last updated 31st Jan 2024
A lower amount of free school meal holiday vouchers are due to be given to parents in Cambridgeshire this year, after expected government cuts.
Cambridgeshire County Council has said it is committed to continuing to provide vouchers during school holidays for children eligible for free school meals.
However, the authority has said it is not able to afford to pay the same amount parents had received when the government was funding the scheme.
The food vouchers had been paid for through the government household support fund.
Parents on low incomes with children between the ages of two and 19 were given supermarket vouchers of up to £180 across the school holidays.
The county council has said there is uncertainty as to whether the government will continue the household support fund and said the expectation is that it will come to an end in March.
The authority has pledged to spend £3million to continue to provide the vouchers for the estimated 21,000 eligible children in the county.
However, parents are now expected to receive up to £135, £45 less than had previously been provided.
At a meeting of the county council’s strategy, resources and performance committee this week (January 30), Councillor Steve Count (Conservative), said the leadership needed to make parents aware of this change.
He said: “I think it would be prudent, I do not suppose many parents in this county sit and watch the joys of a business plan debate, but if you are going to cut their holiday voucher entitlement from £180 to £135 I do think you should let them know, which will help them plan their year.
“I am not saying I supported the £180, I do think that there is a certain amount of responsibility for parents having their own children, however I am not here to say yes or no about that.”
Councillor Lucy Nethsingha (Liberal Democrat), leader of the county council, refuted the claim that the proposed decrease in the value of the vouchers parents will receive is a cut.
She said the county council’s contribution to funding the vouchers was increasing “significantly” and said it was the government’s contribution that was “disappearing”.
Councillor Bryony Goodliffe (Labour), and chair of the authority’s children and young people committee, said: “Spending £3million is definitely not a cut in my book.
“I know an awful lot of very local councils who have said they cannot continue to fund free school meals, quite understandably so with their own budgetary issues.
“I am really pleased that as a council and as a joint administration we have seen this as a huge priority.
“We know that there are 4.2million children living in poverty in this country and that austerity has done nothing to assist our children.
“So I am really delighted that we are not following the government lead to cut the free school vouchers, but are ploughing ahead and making sure that we can fund as much as possible for the children of Cambridgeshire.”
Approval for the £3m of funding for the continuation of the voucher scheme is expected to be given as part of the wider county council budget approval next month.