A scheme offering food and activities for children on free school meals will return this Christmas, Staffordshire County Council has confirmed.
The Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme will be available to thousands of eligible children aged between five and 16.
The programme, which is funded by the Department for Education, includes physical play, fun activities, nutritional advice and a healthy hot meal.
Cllr Mark Sutton, Staffordshire County Council’s cabinet member for children and young people, said:
“With food prices and the cost of living rising, this programme will be crucial for many families over the Christmas holidays.
“The programme will give children access to a wide variety of activities and a hot meal, helping keep them well-fed and active over the school break.
“There’s lots of fun activities on offer, including paintballing, which is one of the newer activities. I would urge eligible parents to make sure they are registered.”
Cllr Mark Sutton, Staffordshire County Council
Since the scheme launched in the summer of 2021, more than 117,000 free places have been made available on the HAF programme with a further 12,700 places being made available this Christmas.
Activities will start on 19th December and run until 30th December. Registration will open at 4pm on 1st December. Those eligible will receive a letter from their school.
For more details visit www.staffordshire.gov.uk/holidayactivities.
