As millions of UK households struggle to put food on the table, families with young children are collectively missing out on £45m in food support.
Consumer body Which? said that at least £45m a year worth of extra support for families with young children in England, Wales and Northern Ireland is not making it to those in need because take up is so low.
The NHS Healthy Start scheme provides extra help to pregnant women as well as families with young children who are both on a low income and on qualifying benefits.
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The support comes in the form of a card which can be used to pay for healthy food such as milk, infant formula and fruit and vegetables. Those eligible can receive top ups of £4.25 or £8.50 a week depending on the age of the child.
However, low take up means more than 200,000 eligible families are missing out on this extra support with at least £880,000 going unclaimed each week — amounting to £45.8m per year.
“The Healthy Start scheme has potential to help many hard-up families that are struggling with the unrelenting cost of living crisis and have had to skip meals or use food banks as a result. However, poor take-up means millions of pounds’ worth of help is going unclaimed,” Sue Davies, head of consumer rights and food policy at Which?, said.
“There is an important role for the government to expand the scheme and increase its value, but we are also calling on supermarkets to help customers by better promoting what is available and providing extra top ups for those who use the scheme.”
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Some supermarkets have previously made efforts to promote the Healthy Start scheme and provided additional support by handing out extra vouchers, free frozen vegetables or through targeted marketing campaigns on key products like milk.
“Supermarkets also need to make it easier for all customers to work out which items offer the best value for money by making sure their pricing is clear and easily comparable between items. Supermarkets must ensure everyone has access to basic, affordable food ranges, especially in areas where they are most needed,” Davis said.
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