Newham Holiday Activities and Food 2023 (HAF)

The Department of Education (DfE) has confirmed that all Local Authorities in England will receive funding to co-ordinate a local Holiday Activities and Food Programme (HAF) during Easter, summer and December school holidays of 2023-2024.

The overall purpose of the grant is to enable the Council to coordinate and provide free holiday provision during the Easter, summer and Christmas school holidays for children that are eligible for benefits-related free school meals. HAF holiday provision includes healthy food, access to positive activities and nutritional advice and guidance.

School holidays can be a particularly difficult time for some families because of reduced income or increased costs relating to food and childcare. For some children this can lead to holiday hunger and a holiday experience gap, with children from these families more likely to experience 'unhealthy holidays' in terms of nutrition and physical health. These children are also less likely to access organised out-of-school activities and more likely to experience social isolation. All of these issues can have a lasting effect on children and young people's health and wellbeing, and lead to lower levels of educational attainment.