A variety of exciting activities and healthy meals will be available to Calderdale’s most disadvantaged children and young people during the school summer holidays, thanks to a funding boost.
Calderdale Council has been awarded over £926,000 from the Department for Education to deliver the Healthy Holidays programme.
The aim is to provide healthy food and enriching activities for primary and secondary school pupils who are eligible for free school meals, from Monday 9 August to Friday 3 September 2021.
This adds to the activity parcels and healthy recipes which the Council provided to lower-income families during the Easter holidays, which built on the Calderdale-wide Never Hungry Again campaign to end child hunger for good.
Calderdale community organisations, schools and childcare providers are invited to apply for a share of the £926,000 Healthy Holidays grant to offer fun and creative activity programmes over the summer holidays, in partnership with Calderdale Council.
The Community Foundation for Calderdale is running the grants programme and applications can be made at https://cffc.co.uk/our-grants/(external link) from Tuesday 8 June until Tuesday 29 June 2021.
Cllr Tim Swift, Calderdale Council’s Leader, said:
“For some families who are struggling financially, the long summer holidays can be an anxious time, trying to manage the family food budget and keep children healthy and entertained.
“Alongside the Healthy Holidays programme, we are working with partner organisations across Calderdale through the Never Hungry Again campaign to do everything we can to offer support to the families who need it most.
“The welcome £926,000 funding boost means we can continue our Healthy Holidays programme throughout the school summer holidays, building on the excellent help with healthy meals and activities provided so far.”
Steve Duncan, CEO of the Community Foundation for Calderdale explained:
“We are keen to receive applications for grants from a wide variety of organisations across Calderdale including schools, arts groups, sports clubs, places of worship, and childcare providers. We will be running an informal information session online in June to help you with your application.”
There are also lots of tips on activities and support available for all families during the summer holidays on the Council’s Healthy Holidays web page: www.calderdale.gov.uk/v2/residents/community-and-living/tackling-poverty-calderdale/healthy-holidays
An information session for organisations applying for the Healthy Holidays grants will be held online, and a date will be released soon. To keep updated, please visit https://cffc.co.uk/healthy-holiday-fund/(external link)
The Healthy Holidays programme is part of the Department for Education’s Holiday Activities and Food Programme 2021(external link).
Follow #CalderdaleHealthyHolidays on Twitter.
For enquiries about the grants process for Healthy Holidays, please contact the Community Foundation for Calderdale at grants@cffc.co.uk