East Sussex County Council has defended its decision to stop providing school holiday food vouchers after Hastings and Rye MP Helena Dollimore criticised the move.
The Reform UK-led council said the government funding that paid for the vouchers ended earlier this year. It has now been replaced by a new £1 billion Crisis and Resilience Fund, which the council says is meant to provide targeted help for families facing financial hardship rather than holiday vouchers for everyone who qualifies for free school meals.
The decision has also been made by several other councils, including Bracknell Forest, Surrey and Somerset.
Labour MP Helena Dollimore said the new government fund should still be used to make sure children from low-income families do not go hungry during the school holidays. She called on East Sussex County Council to bring the vouchers back, saying families had been funded for this support.
She also said many parents were only told about the change in the final week of the school term, calling the situation “totally unacceptable” and warning that it could leave hundreds of children across Hastings, Rye and nearby villages without enough support over the summer.
Council leader Andy Woolley rejected the criticism, saying it was wrong to suggest the council was choosing to let children go hungry. He said schools had informed families in both April and July that the voucher scheme would not continue during the summer.
Woolley also said the council continued to fund vouchers during the Easter and May half-term holidays, even after the previous Household Support Fund ended in March.
A spokesperson for the Department for Work and Pensions said councils can decide how to spend the new Crisis and Resilience Fund based on local needs. They said the funding can be used for holiday food support if councils believe that is the best use of the money.
East Sussex County Council said children who receive benefits-related free school meals can still access free meals and activities through the Holiday Activities and Food Programme during the summer holidays.
The council said it will continue using the funding to support families facing the greatest financial hardship.