Half-term can be a troublesome time as some families with squeezed household budgets worry how to feed or keep children entertained. In order to help parents provide free activities at home during the school holidays, Aldi has donated 10,000 activity books to charities across the UK.
The books which will be shared with families in need nationwide, include games and activities. Alongside recipe ideas for kids, the supermarket will also donate a selection of snacks.
The initiative is part of Aldi’s partnership with community giving platform Neighbourly, which sees the supermarket donate surplus food from all its stores throughout the year to those in need. Neighbourly say their recent research found 89% of local causes have seen demand to provide activities for children increase in the last year, with 94% agreeing that the cost-of-living crisis is impacting children’s access to items like books and toys.
Liz Fox, Corporate Responsibility Director at Aldi UK, said: “We want to support local communities in any way we can. We hope these activity books will help to keep children entertained over the school holidays.”
Steve Butterworth, Chief Executive Officer at Neighbourly, added: “The cost-of-living crisis is creating financial pressure for many families. Aldi’s additional donations will go a long way to putting a smile on children’s faces over the February half-term.”
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Aldi’s partnership with Neighbourly has donated 30 million meals to good causes since launching its food donations initiative in 2019. It will see thousands of free meals given to local charities, foodbanks and community groups over half-term.
The budget supermarket hit the milestone after donating £250,000 to Neighbourly ahead of the Christmas period and launching its Emergency Winter Foodbank Fund to further support increased demand on these organisations. Aldi are keen on providing budget-friendly food to a wider audience.
They successfully trialled a partnership with Too Good To Go, a mobile service that connects supermarkets and restaurants - who have unsold surplus food - to customers who pay a heavily discounted price for food that would otherwise go to waste.
