As the school summer holidays near, many families are looking forward to days out and trips abroad. But on the streets of Harpurhey - one of the most deprived areas in the UK - the looming summer break is being viewed with anxiety and dread.
Here, the cost of living crisis has bitten hard. Rather than fretting about queues at Manchester Airport, parents say they are more concerned about putting food on the table.
During term time, a large proportion of children in this part of this city rely on free school meals. Across Manchester as a whole, 40.9pc of children (37,502) qualified for free school meals as of January - a figure likely to have increased further as inflation continues to soar.
READ MORE: Cost of living crisis deepens north-south divide - with Mancunians left £130 worse off
But the lifeline - which guarantees the poorest children at least one nutritious hot meal each day - looks set to come to an end, potentially plunging even more households into hardship over the next two months.
Sharlee Connolly's seven-year-old daughter, Harmony, is one of those eligible for free meals. In the past, her primary school has provided food vouchers to pupils during the school holidays, however, there is currently no such system in place for the summer break.
It has left Ms Connolly worrying what the impact will be on her already strained finances. The cost of childcare is another headache as she attempts to make arrangements for when she is at work.
"I'm dreading it," she said. "My daughter has a childminder that is £4 an hour, but I only earn £9.50 an hour.
"There are some kids clubs but they only open for a couple of weeks. Her school is opening a holiday club for two weeks but we won't be able to use it because of the hours I work."
Like many families across the city, Ms Connolly, from Middleton, has noticed "a massive difference" in her outgoings in recent months. "I'm a single mum and I'm finding it a lot harder," she said.
"My weekly shop has gone up by about a third and my electric has almost doubled. I'm feeling it.
"I used to put a full tank of petrol in and it would last two weeks, now it's only a week and a half. It's only half a week but it makes a big difference."
In 2019, government figures showed that Harpurhey was the 49th most deprived place in England. The finding was based on the Index of Multiple Deprivation, which takes into account things such as wages, employment, education, health and housing standards.
As bills rise, it is little surprise that people here are struggling. A new report this week revealed that Mancunians experienced a 'real wage' loss of £133 in April as pay packets fail to offset the rising cost of living.
With little to no disposable income, holidays abroad are a luxury that many families in Harpurhey say they simply cannot afford. Mum-of-three Charlotte Gregson is one of many feeling apprehensive about how she will keep her children entertained this summer.
"It's going to be crap," she said. "We won't be able to do days out because we can't afford it.
"We're going camping but that's it. Food bills are going up and we're spending loads week to week.
"The kids snack like there's no tomorrow when they're not in school. I'll have to ration it and meal prep.
"I've got to pay for new uniforms too because I have one going to high school. I'm just not looking forward to it at all."
Mum Rachel says she will also have to get creative to keep her nine-year-old daughter busy over the holidays.
"It's going to be difficult because everything is costing more," the 39-year-old explained. "We have to try to do things like picnics in the park or free activities at the library."
A customer service worker, Rachel's employer is allowing her to work from home over summer so she can look after her daughter. Although that means childcare costs will not be an issue, her food bills will inevitably increase as my daughter will no longer receive free school meals.
"That helps when they are in school," shesaid. "Normally they give you vouchers when they're off, but we don't know whether that's going to happen.
"If it came to it, I would have to starve so she can eat. It's really difficult and it's only going to get worse with the school holidays.
"You see people stealing butter and cheese. There are so many people in poverty.
"You've got to try your best, there's nothing else you can do. You just have to keep smiling because if you cry you're going to go under."
In a bid to help struggling families, the supermarket chain Asda recently announced that its cafes would offer £1 meals to children throughout the summer break, with no need for an adult to buy anything to qualify for the deal. However, the offer will not come as much help for families in Harpurhey, where the local Asda has no café.
"I'm worried it's going to get worse," said Tosin Akinniyi, a masters student at the University of Bolton who also works part-time.
"Salaries have not been increased and food prices are only going up. I have a daughter who is only one but I have to pay loads to take her to a minder."
Pushing a pram through a sun-kissed Harpurhey Shopping Centre, Andrew McCarthy predicts that the cost of his food shop is about to increase dramatically. The 48-year-old suffers from crippling arthritis and was recently told he could no longer work because of it.
Yet he and his girlfriend still have five children to feed and care for. "I'm dreading the school holidays," he said.
"I think everyone is. It's just a matter of keeping them going.
"My food shop will probably double. If you go into Asda, a jar of sandwich spread used to cost £1.50. Now it's £1.69.
"It's got to change. The government say people can manage but this is coming from people who have to claim for stuff on expenses."
To support struggling families, Manchester council has previously said it would provide two payments to children eligible for Free School Meals. These payments will be issued by schools across the city and consisted of a £15 payment per pupil last month and a £40 payment across the summer break.
Councillor Rabnawaz Akbar, Executive Member for Finance and Resources, Manchester City Council, said:
"Despite lobbying of the government by ourselves and others over the last couple of years through the pandemic and the ongoing cost of living crisis, the government funding to provide free school meals support to families over school holidays has now ended. Councils are expected instead to divert money from the Household Support Grant they receive - which is to help all households in need - if they want to help offset costs for families in receipt of free school meals.
"Although we will be using as much as we possibly can of our Household Support Fund grant to provide some much-needed support to our families though the summer holidays, the amount of direct help we can actually give them is limited as we have to work within the constraints of the grant we have been given.
"In addition to the cash payment we're making to families we have also ensured that this year there is an even more comprehensive Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme in place across the city, involving some 100 providers, allowing places for around 8,000 children. These schemes will provide free activities with food included for families with children who receive free school meals, and we would urge all eligible families to make sure they sign up for these.
"All the schemes will provide daily physical, play and knowledge activities for the children involved and there will also be opportunities for families to connect with further associated support.
"However, we fully recognise the situation that many of our families are in and we will continue to lobby the government to provide food for families during school holidays and to reverse the decision they have made not to continue with this vital funding.
"In the mean-time we would love to hear from any organisations or individuals in the city who would like to team up with us to help provide direct support for our families at what we know is a really difficult time for them."
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