A MUM who was the recipient of one of the food boxes put together by a Scottish local authority to replace free school meals during lockdown has branded the contents a “disgrace”.
The single parent claims she will struggle to feed her five-year-old a healthy, substantial or balanced meal with the contents of the package, and says her three-year-old son is “expected to starve” as nursery children do not qualify for the scheme.
She believes that East Ayrshire Council, who provided the food box, should issue a payment or supermarket voucher instead.
The mum said: “When it got delivered on Tuesday I thought, where’s the rest of it? There was no fruit like there was in the Christmas box, there is hardly anything in it.
“The first week they gave us a £25 payment and the amount of food you can buy with that is unbelievable. There’s not £25 worth of food in those boxes, there’s barely a tenner’s worth. It’s not going to feed him for five days. It just feels insulting.”
East Ayrshire Council is one of only two local authorities in Scotland that are not offering voucher or cash alternatives to food deliveries during lockdown.
The parent continued: “For me, it makes more sense to issue vouchers or cash payments so we can go to the shop and get fruit and veg and different ingredients to make a proper healthy meal.
“I emailed my MSP Jeane Freeman to say I was disappointed. As Health Secretary she should know kids need vitamins and better food than a tin of beans. Just because we’re poor doesn’t mean we don’t care about our health.”
Andrew Kennedy, Head of Facilities and Property Management at East Ayrshire Council, said: “Christmas boxes and local gift cards were delivered to cover the two week Christmas holiday period, in addition to the government funded £100 payment to all families entitled to income based free school meals.
"Due to the timing of the announcements, a further £25 payment was provided to support families for the first 10 days of this school term.
"The food box has been carefully designed by our experienced chefs with a focus on protein and carbohydrate products that are easy for children and young people to help prepare.
“I recognise that children in Early Years have not received a food box this week but can confirm further ongoing support to families of Early Years children, who qualify for a free school meal, is being arranged.
“A £100 payment has been made this week from the council to those families and further support will be provided as remote learning continues.”
MSP Jeane Freeman said: “Prior to Christmas, the Scottish Government provided a cash grant of £100 for every family with children in receipt of free school meals and we will shortly become the only part of the UK to give low income families an extra £10 per week for every child - initially for children up to age six and then for every child up to age 16."
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