Allocation of ‘vouchers’ for benefit-related FSM children
Dear parent/carer,
We have been able to confirm that your child is eligible for vouchers for food, while they cannot access Free School Meals (FSM) in school. Can we politely remind you that these are to be spent on food for your children.
How is it organised?
A company called Edenred is being used by all schools to generate vouchers for children and families. Schools have some degree of flexibility about a number of things. Schools can decide how often they issue vouchers and the start date. But the amount of money allocated per child week per week has been set by the Government.
How much will each child/family get per week?
Each family will be allocated £15 per week, for each of their children.
£15 per week for one child.
2 x £15 = £30 per week if you have 2 children.
3 x £15 = £45 per week if you have 3 children.
Do families get vouchers for Nursery children?
No.
Nursery children do not currently get a FSM and so they do not get vouchers to replace them.
Will you get any vouchers for the Easter holidays?
Yes.
We were unable to provide vouchers earlier as the national system, Edenred, did not send us the access log-ins that we needed. This was not your fault or ours. Therefore we feel no-one should be disadvantaged by an Edenred admin issue.
However, NOT ALL schools have made the decision to back-date vouchers for over Easter. So please be aware, that if you have a child e.g. in High School, then vouchers for other children in other schools may start from after the Easter holidays.
How many weeks worth of vouchers will you get?
The Edenred system is proving difficult for schools and many families to use. Therefore, to make it easier both for you and for us, we have allocated vouchers to you for a number of weeks in one go. This will reduce the need for both families and us to access the Edenred system.
We are sending you vouchers for FIVE weeks. This is instead of the current packed lunches on offer.
This covers the 2 weeks of the Easter holidays, plus the 3 weeks until the current Government lockdown is due to end.
This means that you are being sent vouchers which will last you from now, until FRIDAY 8th May. PLEASE NOTE, the email you receive will incorrectly say that they are to last until May 1st. This is purely an admin error. They are for FIVE weeks and until May 8th.
What will happen from May 8th if schools remain closed?
If we remain closed, then we will issue more vouchers for you at some point the following week. It may be that from that point that we send you vouchers on a weekly basis.
PLEASE NOTE – We have NO idea when schools will open. We hear the same daily Government briefings as you. We have no prior knowledge on any daily Government announcements, which makes it very difficult to plan and run a school.
Do we get sent actual vouchers?
No.
We have registered you on the ‘voucher’ system. But it is not a voucher that you will receive. Instead you will receive an email with what is called an ‘E-code’. This is a 12 digit number.
What do you do with this E-code/number?
This E-code is to be used by parents to generate an E-gift card, which parents can then spend in specific shops. Parents will need to log in and access the Edenred system in order to change the E-code into an E-gift card.
Here is the help guide to access the Edenred system.
What do you do if you have any problems accessing Edenred or creating vouchers?
You will need to contact Edenred. The details are in the user guide.
We are very sorry, but we will be unable to help. Our access to Edenred as a school is different to parents and we have not used this system in any way before. So please do not contact us for support and advice, as we will be unable to support or advise. Apologies.
TOP TIPS!!!!!!!!!
- We have been told that the Edenred emails with the E-code/E-gift cards often go into your ‘Trash’ in your emails. So PLEASE check your ‘Trash’!
- We have heard from others that many families have needed to contact Edenred for advice or support. Therefore we would encourage you to try and generate your gift cards as soon as possible and not leave it until you are running low on food and can’t wait.
- In our experience the Edenred website can be very busy. You may find it easier and quicker to use it at least busy times of the day e.g. later at night.
When will you receive your first e-mail with your E-code?
We have set a ‘delivery date’ for this email for tomorrow. Therefore we expect that you will receive it at some point tomorrow. If you do not receive it then PLEASE CHECK YOUR TRASH.
If you have still not received anything by Thursday lunchtime, then please e-mail us on info@kingedward.org
This system is brand new to schools as well as parents. It has taken a considerable amount of time and effort to get this set up for you all. I very much hope that your E-codes arrive without any issues and that you are successful in converting these into the E-gift cards that I know many of you really need.
Kate Byrne
