Free school meal vouchers to continue in Rotherham until Easter
It comes after 1 in 3 children in Rotherham live in poverty
Free school meal vouchers are set to continue in Rotherham through until Easter.
The council is set to approve a ÂŁ1.1 million government grant that'll go towards supermarket vouchers.
Since the start of the pandemic, there's been a 25% rise in the number of kids who are eligible in the borough. With a recent report from charity Save the Children, also indicated that more than 1 in 3 children in the Rotherham borough now live in poverty, a five per cent increase since 2014/15.
Labour Leader of Rotherham Council, Cllr Chris Read said;
“The cuts to Universal Credit and Working Tax Credits have left a huge hole in the finances of many local families, at a time when bills are rising and the Conservatives’ National Insurance rise is only months away.
"As we head towards the festive period when pressure on family budgets is often at its highest, we want to ensure as many residents as possible get the benefit of this support in the simplest way possible.
“We know that the holiday vouchers to support children who receive free school meals during term time have made a real difference over the last few months, but we’ve only been able to fund them one holiday at a time.
"So it’s good to be able to give families some certainty about the support they’ll get over the months ahead.”