Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with Edenred on providing technical support to families trying to access and use vouchers for the Covid Summer Food Fund throughout the summer holidays.

Provision for free school meals is ordinarily term time only. However, owing to the COVID-19 outbreak the government understands that children and parents face an entirely unprecedented situation over the summer. To reflect this, we will be providing additional funding for a COVID Summer Food Fund which will enable families with children who are eligible for benefits-related free school meals to receive food vouchers covering the six-week holiday period. Our guidance on the COVID Summer Food Fund is available here: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/covid-summer-food-fund.

Through the COVID Summer Food Fund, schools can support eligible pupils with a £90 voucher to cover the six-week holiday period. Schools must order the vouchers at least one week before their school term ends, and they will be issued to families within 7 days. This is in recognition that school offices will be closed in the summer holidays. If a school receives a claim for an eligible child during the final week before the school’s summer holidays, it will be possible for the school to place an exceptional order for that child via our supplier Edenred.

Customer service support will continue to be available throughout the summer holidays.