Lower-income families in Oldham are missing out on thousands of pounds worth of Healthy Start vouchers which help feed babies and young children. The national Healthy Start scheme helps parents, carers and pregnant women pay for milk, formula, fruit and vegetables.

Pregnant women, parents and carers who have children aged three or under and in receipt of certain benefits are eligible for the scheme. It is estimated millions of pounds worth of Healthy Start Vouchers are unclaimed across the country. Families who are entitled to help face hardship because of complications in the system and delays in being accepted onto the scheme.

Oldham Labour’s motion to full council on Wednesday will call on the Government to raise the amount Healthy Start Vouchers pay families to match rising costs. And Oldham Council will continue to push the campaign locally to get more people getting the help they need.

Councillor Leanne Munroe, Oldham Council lead for early years said ‘Healthy Start vouchers can give some low income families and pregnant women help with vital food. Across Oldham, about one third of people eligible for help don’t claim it – you can claim on the NHS website or by phone or e mail[i]. Food inflation running at 16.3% is just one of the rising costs families are coping with and the cost of baby formula is shocking – some Co-op stores have put it behind the till to stop people shoplifting.[ii]

 I’m also calling on the Government to raise the value of the vouchers to match inflation – the British Pregnancy Advisory Service found that baby formula has increased by 22% since the last time vouchers were reviewed in 2021. We need a fit and proper Healthy Start for Oldham’s babies and toddlers.’

Councillor Amanda Chadderton, Leader of Oldham Council added ‘Oldham Labour is campaigning for affordable childcare and reform of the way it is funded. Recent research by campaign group Pregnant Then Screwed found that three quarters of mothers who pay for childcare say that it doesn’t make financial sense for them to work. A quarter of parents said that childcare costs equate to almost 75% of their pay packet. And half of parents say that they have had to reduce the number of hours they work because childcare has become unaffordable. Women are being excluded from work and children don’t get the start they deserve. The Council will look again to see if it can do more to help but the Government needs to act. Labour has a plan to provide high quality affordable childcare to meet the needs of modern families.’