There has been a significant amount of discussion online and in the media about changes to school holiday food vouchers and support available to households in East Sussex.

Unfortunately, some of the information being shared is misleading or incomplete. We thought it would be helpful to provide the facts so that everyone understands the changes and the support that remains available for households across East Sussex.

The facts about the Crisis and Resilience Fund and school holiday food vouchers

The Government has given East Sussex £7.3 million to support people in financial hardship. This is the Crisis and Resilience Fund, which is aimed at expanding ways of supporting people. But it is not new funding: it largely replaces funding councils have received for years.

As a result, many councils across the country, including all councils in Sussex, are no longer providing school holiday food vouchers and have had to review how support is provided to ensure funding is targeted towards those with the greatest need.

What has changed and what support is available

The school holiday food voucher scheme has come to an end. However, this does not mean support for families has ended. In fact:

• The council continued providing holiday food vouchers over the Easter holidays and May half-term, despite many areas ending their schemes earlier.

• £625k is being used to support foodbanks and community food partnerships and expand Holiday Food and Fun provision.

• There is additional support for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and those in alternative provision.

• £2.7m is being used to support households experiencing financial hardship with essentials such as food, utilities and other urgent needs.

• Of this, £1.35 million is available now and is being used to target crisis support to some of our most vulnerable families and households

Claims that families are being left without support over the summer, or that this hasn’t been communicated to families, are simply not true.

While the way support is being delivered has changed, significant funding continues to be available for households most in need.

Working with schools we have been communicating these changes to parents and carers since April, to help families understand what support is available and how to access it.

Even more support will be available from September, and we will share more information about this over the coming weeks.

Where to get help

Anyone who needs immediate support can contact the Family Information Service on 0345 60 80 192.

Further information is also available on:

• Holiday Food and Fun programmes
• The Crisis and Resilience Fund
• Other cost of living support available to East Sussex residents

We hope this helps provide clarity on the changes and addresses some of the misinformation currently circulating online.