DfE announces free meals and activities for 50,000 children over 2019 summer holidays
Over £9 million in funding will be available for schemes to provide free meals and activities for up to 50,000 disadvantaged children over the 2019 summer holidays. Activities include sports and healthy cooking classes, as well as targeted support for the most vulnerable children.
Two of the eleven organisations which will receive funding are based in the North East – Street Games in Newcastle and Gateshead Council. The funding comes on the back of a similar programme which saw £2 million of funding delivered in 2018 for 18,000 students.
David White, StreetGames Fit and Fed Campaign Director, said: ‘Since 2016, StreetGames has led the Fit and Fed campaign to reclaim the holidays for those children and young people at risk of holiday hunger, inactivity, and loneliness. In 2018 we worked with the Department for Education to successfully establish 14 clusters of free-to-access holiday activity programmes across England, and we are delighted to be collaborating again, along with our partners at Newcastle City Council to develop a comprehensive programme across Newcastle-upon-Tyne. We have already engaged more than 100 schools, sports clubs, and community groups across the city.’
For more information on the programme see the DfE Website