About the programme
Healthy Holidays is a partnership between Leeds Community Foundation and Leeds City Council, expected to be funded by the Department for Education. The fund will support community organisations to provide engaging and fun activities and healthy food for children eligible for free school meals and other targeted children from low-income families in the school holidays.
Key information
- Healthy Holidays can support:
- school age children (reception to year 11) on benefit related free school meals (85% of attendees) whose eligibility has been confirmed by Leeds City Council.
- SEND young people to the age of 16
- other school age children who you deem as otherwise vulnerable (up to 15% of attendees)
- You must deliver at least 4 days at Easter & Christmas and 16 days in the Summer (24 in total)
- Sessions must be at least 4 hours per day, with at least 1 hour of physical activity per day
- You must offer a hot meal (usually lunch), and should provide breakfast and healthy snacks
- You must provide daily nutrition education to support understanding of healthy eating
- You should connect children and families to relevant local support services
- You should be open to and support children and young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
- Projects must be good value for money
Examples of activity that can be funded
- Sport & physical activity, dance, drama, outdoor activities, games, arts and crafts, environmental activities
- Providing new experiences e.g. trips to the coast, countryside or attractions (day trips only)
- Activities that include cookery and information that:
- improves the skills and confidence of families to make affordable, healthy meals
- helps children to understand nutrition and how to achieve it in daily life
Grant Size: up to £22,000
Location: Leeds
Duration: for Easter, Summer and Christmas school holidays in 2025
Application Deadline: 06/01/2025 at 12 noon
Decisions: early March 2025
Read the full criteria for this fund on the Leeds Community Foundation website: Apply for the Healthy Holidays fund
A note from the funder:
At this stage there has not been an announcement by the Department of Education on funding for the Holiday Activity and Food programme in 2025.
We would not usually start applications until the funding is fully confirmed. However, Leeds City Council and Leeds Community Foundation have agreed to start the process at risk for all Healthy Holiday schemes, so that if funding is allocated, we are ready to deliver projects in the Easter holidays 2025.
Providers have told us that this is preferred to having shorter application time.
The criteria for 2025 are somewhat different to past years. We would urge you to review them carefully, to plan your grant application in 2025.
The fund is to support primarily children on free school meals to access fun activities, nutritious food, and wider support across Leeds Full details are set out in the criteria and additional information.
