Families lose £442 a year: how to get free food from the government.

Free food for families

According to The Sun: According to statistics, hundreds of thousands of parents are deprived of the opportunity to receive free food vouchers worth up to £442 a year. The Healthy Start program in the UK provides significant support to families facing financial hardship by offering vouchers for purchasing essential items like bread, milk, and fresh vegetables and fruits.

Hundreds of thousands of families may be missing out on free food vouchers worth up to £442 a yearPA

The program is available for pregnant women and families, and eligibility criteria depend on income and entitlement to benefits like Universal Credit. It offers weekly assistance: £4.25 for women in the 10th week of pregnancy, £8.50 for the first year of a child's life, and £4.25 per week for children aged one to four years.

These amounts can accumulate to over £440 a year. However, a recent analysis by Policy in Practice revealed that around 201,000 households are not taking advantage of this opportunity.

Nearly £55 million in Healthy Start vouchers remain unclaimed, as families lose an average of £273 a year.

How does the Healthy Start program work?

If you meet the criteria for the Healthy Start program, you will receive a free card that is topped up every four weeks, allowing you to purchase certain products at stores. In fact, you can use it at most supermarkets like Aldi, Iceland, and Tesco, as well as some convenience stores, pharmacies, and filling stations.

All you need to do is swipe the card at the checkout to save on your purchases.

What products can be purchased with the Healthy Start card

The card allows you to buy only specific products - here is the complete list of what can and cannot be purchased.

You can buy:

• Fresh fruits and vegetables
• Canned or frozen fruits or vegetables
• Dried fruits
• Fresh, dried or canned legumes
• Fresh, whole milk
• Infant formula milk based on cow's milk
• Healthy Start vitamins

Cannot buy:

• Any frozen or canned products with added fats, salt, sugar, or spices
• Chips or onion rings
• Canned fruits in syrup
• Smoothies or juices
• Alternative milk
• Stage two infant formulas
• Powdered, condensed, or flavored milk (except for stage one infant formula)

To receive a Healthy Start card, you must receive one of the following benefits:

• Child tax credits (only if your family income is £16,190 or less)
• Financial support
• Income-based jobseeker's allowance
• Pension credit (including child addition)
• Universal Credit (only if your family's net income is £408 or less per month from work)

You may also qualify for Healthy Start if:

• You are under 18 and pregnant, even if you receive no benefits
• You receive income-related jobseeker's allowance (ESA) and are more than 10 weeks into your pregnancy
• You, your partner, or guardian receive tax credits only when you inform that you work 16 hours or less per week

You could get up to £442 worth of free food each year for each child. Financial support will stop when your child turns four or if you stop receiving any benefits.

The data indicating how many families miss out on the opportunity to receive free vouchers has become part of a broader analysis from Policy in Practice regarding unclaimed benefits.

It shows that over seven million households are losing around £24 billion in needed funds. Unclaimed benefits have reached a record level, rising from £19 billion in 2023 to £23 billion in 2024.

The average household could be £3,203 better off if all possible benefits were claimed.

A significant portion of unclaimed funds pertains to Universal Credit, where over £11 billion remains uncompensated for 1.67 million households with an average grant of £6,669 a year.

There are also significant gaps in pension credits, carer benefits, child benefit payments, and local tax support.

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In today's circumstances, a significant portion of families finds themselves in difficult financial situations, so programs like Healthy Start can be a true lifesaver. It is important for families to be aware of such opportunities and actively utilize them, as it can significantly ease their lives. The more people learn about these programs, the greater the chances that their needs will be met, and unclaimed funds will not remain unused.