E-vouchers to the value of £15 per child per week will be provided for eligible families to buy food whilst schools are closed due to the Coronavirus pandemic. The company that is processing the vouchers for families on behalf of the government is called Edenred. The link below takes you to Edenred’s parents and carers information page:
https://www.edenred.co.uk/reward-recipients/Free-School-Meal-Vouchers/
Schools have ordered vouchers for their eligible families via the Edenred website. On receiving a voucher order from a school, Edenred then sends an email to the family giving instructions on how to order a voucher. Sometimes these emails fall into the junk or spam file of email accounts so families need to check regularly to find the email. When families order their voucher, another email is sent with the voucher code. For families with no access to an email address, a paper voucher will be sent to the family home in the post.
Why are the vouchers currently taking so long to reach families?
Edenred has reported a very high demand for vouchers from schools. This is because it is a national voucher scheme for all schools, and it means that some families have had to wait longer than expected for their voucher. In some cases there have been delays of up to 3 days for vouchers to arrive after the family has selected their supermarket choice. We appreciate how frustrating this is, but please be assured that vouchers will reach all eligible families soon.
Please note that local authorities and schools are not in control of how quickly vouchers are processed, but families can continue to order packed lunches while they wait for their voucher to arrive. You can order your packed lunch by contacting your school or the Council’s Contact Centre on tel. 427 7000.
If you choose to order food online using your voucher, do check first that your chosen supermarket offers an online service
Note that most supermarkets don’t permit use of the self-service tills with a voucher payment.
April 2020
