Holiday Food and Fun in Leicester

Food and Fun on offer for families in Leicester this summer

Feeding Leicester, of which Action Homeless is a member, are delighted to announce a programme of summer fun for 2018, supported by funding from the Department for Education.

Working with established community groups and other partners, we will be making summer holiday meals and activities available to hundreds of children across Leicester.

Feeding Leicester, part of the national Feeding Britain network, is coalition of local charities and community organisations working to provide access to good food for all across Leicester. The summer holiday clubs are part of a national initiative to make holiday food and fun available to children and families around the country.

3 million children in the UK are at risk of going hungry during school holidays. The summer holiday is particularly hard, as low-income families can struggle to cover the additional food costs over six weeks, particularly in the absence of free school meals.

Action Homeless, with the support of Leicester City Council, are coordinating activity in Leicester and helping grassroots community groups to provide ‘food and fun’ in their localities. Adventure Playgrounds around the city will also be offering packed lunches alongside play. From Monday 16th July – Friday 24th August, clubs will be offering a range of stimulating activities and nutritious meals. Fareshare East Midlands will be providing food and volunteers from across the city will be helping to prepare and serve meals.

A full timetable of project activity can be found here 

Holiday clubs have a beneficial effect on children’s health, physical activity levels, educational progress and social skills. Cllr Sarah Russell, Leicester’s deputy city mayor for children, young people and schools said: “The holiday clubs and adventure playgrounds will be offering children the chance to enjoy a healthy meal, as well as take part in a range of fun activities. I hope that lots of families are able to benefit from them, especially those who are struggling over the long summer holiday.”

This summer, the Department for Education is providing funding to support research into best practices for holiday clubs.

Eight areas within Feeding Britain’s network have been selected to take part in the programme, with holiday provision running across schools, community centres, church halls and youth groups.

The other areas taking part in the 2018 Summer Holiday Provision programme are Coventry, Bristol, Bradford, Merseyside, South Shields and Barnsley.

For more information about Leicester’s ‘Food and Fun’ projects please contact Eilidh Stringer on 0116 2211851 or eilidhstringer@actionhomeless.org.uk