Thank you for your patience regarding the above. This has been a huge logistical challenge for the government to implement and there have been a significant number of problems nationally. We were one of a number of schools across the country that struggled to get access to the national portal despite numerous telephone calls and emails to both the Department for Education and Edenred (the company responsible for the national voucher scheme), Lancashire County Council and the local MPs.
You should have received a voucher which represents four weeks’ provision for your child(ren). This is to cover from Monday 6 April to Friday 1 May. In my initial letter to you I did say that the free school meal provision would not be available over the Easter holidays, but the day after I wrote that letter the government changed their stance on this and agreed to pay this over the holiday period. However, they did state that this payment was a one-off and would not be paid over future holiday periods.
We have requested further vouchers to cover the three weeks between Monday 4 May and Friday 22 May and these should be emailed to you early next week.
Thank you for your ongoing support.