Families on targeted free school meals get a £10 voucher per child for half term, down from £15. The council plans to end holiday vouchers in October 2027.

Children on targeted free school meals in the East Riding will get a £10 supermarket voucher for October half term, the council says. The vouchers used to be worth £15 a week. The council also plans to end holiday vouchers altogether in October 2027 and ask families to apply for help instead.

The details are on the council’s Crisis and Resilience Fund page. On 13 October the council said its cabinet had approved extending the support paid for by that fund, which is worth more than £3.8 million.

The quick answer

  • This half term (26 to 30 October): £10 per eligible child. You do not need to apply; the school sends the voucher.
  • Also covered: Christmas 2026, February half term 2027 and Easter 2027, at £10 a child for each week.
  • Who gets it: children on Targeted Free School Meals, including Universal Credit households with net earned income of £7,400 a year or less.
  • Who does not: children on the newer Expanded Free School Meals.
  • From October 2027: no more holiday vouchers. Families would apply for a crisis payment instead.

Why the voucher is smaller

The council says the old £15 vouchers were paid for by the Household Support Fund, which ended in March 2026. The government replaced it in April with the Crisis and Resilience Fund.

The council says the new fund “has different requirements and must support a wider range of services”. Its page adds: “Although the amount has reduced, eligible families will continue to receive help during the school holidays.”

Each council decides how to spend its share, so the amount differs from area to area.

Who qualifies

The voucher goes only to children on Targeted Free School Meals. The council says that includes children in households on Universal Credit with annual net earned income of £7,400 or less, and children who meet the other qualifying benefit criteria in the government’s guidance.

Children in Universal Credit households earning more than £7,400 get a free lunch in term time under what the council calls Expanded Free School Meals. Those children do not get the holiday voucher.

The voucher buys groceries. It cannot be spent on alcohol, fuel, lottery tickets or tobacco, and the council says most supermarkets take it in store only, not online.

What changes in 2027

The council has set out a two-step change:

Period Holiday food support
October 2026 to Easter 2027 £10 voucher per eligible child per week, sent by the school
May to September 2027 Support for eligible households receiving council tax support
From October 2027 Voucher scheme ends; families apply for a crisis payment

The council says moving to applications lets it “target support towards those who need it most” and check whether families could get other help, such as income or debt advice.

The wider fund

The Crisis and Resilience Fund is a three-year Department for Work and Pensions scheme. In the East Riding it has four parts:

  • Crisis payments for a sudden loss of income, an unexpected bill or an emergency
  • Housing payments, which replaced Discretionary Housing Payments in April, to help people keep their tenancies
  • Resilience services, such as budgeting, benefits and debt advice, from the council or local organisations
  • Community coordination between voluntary groups and council services

Councillor Nigel Wilkinson, the cabinet member for finance and governance, said: “These changes will keep urgent help available for residents, while also investing in advice, prevention, housing support, community support and longer-term help with money problems.” (East Riding of Yorkshire Council, 13 October 2026)

Who can apply for a crisis payment

The council’s page says you can apply if:

  • you have lived in the East Riding for more than a month, and
  • you are responsible for the utility bills at your address, or you are registered as homeless with the council after at least a month at an East Riding address, and
  • the DWP or HMRC has your current correspondence address in the East Riding.

One application covers everything. The council assesses it for a crisis payment, its own Emergency Assistance Scheme or a referral. It asks people not to apply twice for the same need. If you cannot apply online, call (01482) 393939 for help by phone or face to face.

Low-income households heated by oil or LPG may get help to fill the tank. Humber and Wolds Rural Action runs that scheme with the council.

Social supermarkets and pantries

The council lists low-cost social supermarkets and pantries, open to anyone in need:

  • Beverley: Cherry Tree Community Centre
  • Bridlington: The Hinge Centre; New Pasture Lane Community Centre
  • Easington: Easington Pantry
  • Eastrington: Eastrington Pantry
  • Goole: Moorlands Community Charity; Two Rivers Community Pantry
  • Hedon: St Augustine’s Pantry
  • Hessle and Anlaby: Hessle and Anlaby Foodbank
  • Market Weighton and Pocklington: The People’s Pantry
  • Withernsea: Shores Centre

What it means for you

  • If your child had the £15 voucher before, expect £10 this half term. Check with the school if nothing arrives.
  • If your child is on Expanded Free School Meals, there is no holiday voucher. You can still apply for a crisis payment if money runs out.
  • Plan for 2027: from October 2027 there will be no automatic voucher.
  • Christmas holiday clubs: the free Holiday Activities and Food programme runs again at Christmas, with up to four funded places per eligible child. Places go first come, first served.

Half-term dates and events are on our October half term page, and council tax help is on our council tax bands page.

Sources