Half a million children ‘face holiday hunger’ if £1bn crisis fund is ditched

People preparing free meals for vulnerable families at a London food bank during Covid. The HSF was introduced in 2021 after the government withdrew the £20 universal credit pandemic uplift. Photograph: Tolga Akmen/AFP/Getty Images

More than half a million children will go hungry during school holiday periods from the October half-term if the government fails to renew a £1bn local welfare crisis fund due to end in six weeks’ time, charities have warned.

English councils last year spent £370m from their household support fund (HSF) allocations on holiday food vouchers for pupils on free school meals (FSM) – but more than a quarter of authorities say this support could disappear if the fund is ditched.