Free breakfast parcels extended for children in Telford
Telford & Wrekin Council has extended its offering of breakfast parcels to children eligible for free school meals.
The authority also aims to work with partners to provide lunch packs during the Christmas and 2021 Easter holidays.
This is the second time the scheme, initially set up to cover early summer only, has been extended and follows the campaign led by England footballer Marcus Rashford, who today praised cafes in Telfprd which are offering their own free meal services to youngsters.
See also:
The initiative, aided by community partners, provides parcels containing breakfast items for children to last 5 days.
The packages, which need to be collected, are available for eligible families to further support them during the difficult times created by the coronavirus pandemic.
These parcels will be available for children in years 3 to 11 who are in receipt of free school meals for financial reasons.
The council provided additional funding as well as from Defra to ensure the provision could be extended to see families through over the festive holiday period.
To deliver this project the, authority sought support from community partners and over the past five months these partners and their volunteers have worked to ensure children have a good, healthy breakfast.
Top priority
Council leader Shaun Davies said: “This type of investment from the council is our top priority in order to ensure we protect and care for those who need our support the most.
"I am extremely proud of the work which has been delivered by the council, its community partners and volunteers over the last few months to ensure these breakfast provisions continue to be provided for our residents.”
Through its community partners, the council has provided more than 43,800 breakfasts to children and young people eligible for free school meals across the borough from June to August 2020. The breakfast provision is available in all wards across the borough.
The council will also continue to provide further support through the existing Holiday Activity & Eat Well Fund. This includes providing activity sessions and healthy meals during the main school holidays to those eligible in 10 wards.
Councillor Paul Watling, cabinet member for cooperative communities, engagement and partnerships, said: “We are committed to supporting our communities through these difficult times over the Christmas holiday period and hopefully through to Easter.
“It was the hard work of council officers and the continued support from partner organisations that secured this further extension of the service.
“Our community partners and their volunteers have put in a substantial amount of work to make this provision available, it has been a fantastic effort and we know this service will be welcomed by families.
“Regardless of decisions taken nationally on free school meals, as a council we think it’s vital that we continue to support those eligible for this breakfast meals, because this council’s mission is to protect, care and invest to support our residents.”
Parents will need to register for the parcels before collection from a dedicated centre.
Anyone who would like to volunteer, get involved or make a donation to help with this scheme, contact grant.applications@telford.gov.uk
