Families in Bath and North East Somerset who receive benefit-related free school meals can now get support with food costs, up to and including the Christmas half term 2024.
If you live in Bath and North East Somerset, get benefit-related free school meals, and received a Free School Meal Voucher during the October half term, you will also be eligible for an electronic supermarket voucher worth £30 per child for the Christmas half term period.
Eligibility
To receive the free school meal supermarket vouchers, your child must be eligible for or receiving benefit-related free school meals (and therefore, their school will receive the Pupil Premium funding) and they must attend a maintained school or academy in Bath and North East Somerset.
We are also providing vouchers to families attending Early Years settings that would have qualified for benefit-related free school meals, if their child was of school age.
Please visit our benefit-related free school meals page to find out more about eligibility, and then use the form below to make an application for free school meal supermarket vouchers.
How the scheme works
Receiving your vouchers
This voucher system will be the same as our previous process during the October half term.
After entering your name and email address, you'll get your vouchers via email, in 24 to 72 hours. The vouchers are being distributed electronically where possible. In exceptional circumstances, we can help families who may find this difficult.
How to spend them
You can spend the vouchers on food and other essential items at the supermarkets below.
| Brand | Where you can spend it |
|---|---|
| Morrison's | In store only |
| Sainsbury's | In store only |
| Tesco | In store only |
| Aldi | In store only |
| Asda | In store and online |
| John Lewis/Waitrose | In store and online |
| Marks & Spencer | In store and online |
| Farmfoods | In store only |
| Iceland | In store only |
You will receive ‘Select’ codes with a web link to our supplier, Hawk Incentives, which will take you to a page where you will have a reward total (£30 for each eligible child) and you can choose to spend this at one or more of the participating supermarkets.
Once you have selected your supermarket, you can check out your vouchers via the shopping basket.
Time limits
The Select codes will only be valid for 2 months, so you should act quickly. However, once you have selected your supermarkets and received your vouchers, the normal time limits for each store will apply.
Check if you need to apply
If you have previously applied and received a voucher for the October half term, we will automatically email you to ask you to confirm if you would like a voucher for the Christmas holiday period. Once you confirm this, we will email you a Select code, or multiple codes, if you have more than one eligible child.
You'll need to apply for vouchers now if either of the following applies:
- You didn't receive a free school meal voucher during the summer holiday
- We've contacted you about a change in circumstances for one or more of your children
Before you apply
You can apply for the vouchers online. You'll need to tell us:
- Your name
- Address
- Contact details
- National Insurance number
- Details of your children and the school they attend
What happens next?
We will review your application within 7 calendar days. If you are eligible, we will send you an email with a link to a website where you can claim a voucher for one of the participating supermarkets.
When you receive the voucher you'll need to save it to your smartphone or device, as we can't issue replacements. You may want to print the voucher off before you take it to the supermarket. You must redeem the voucher in full in one transaction, and you can't get change in cash.
If you prefer not to use all of the money at once, it's therefore a good idea to split the amount available to you between different supermarkets.