Implementing Holiday Provision Programmes: A Qualitative Investigation of the Experiences of Senior Stakeholders

Mann, Emily; Widdison, Clara; Defeyter, Margaret Anne

doi:10.4236/jss.2020.87023

Cited by 8 publications

(13 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…The views of hub leaders in the current study lend support to previous research that the delivery of holiday provision relies on the relationships and networks of holiday hub staff (Mann et al, 2020;Stretesky et al, 2020). Holiday hub leads brokered relationships with a range of organizations, including local food producers, food suppliers, restaurants, catering organizations, and food aid charities in their communities to procure sufficient food to ensure that all children attending their holiday hub received a meal.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

“…Holiday hub leaders endeavored to serve healthy meals to children, and owing to limited finances, they adopted a variety of methods to procure food via food purchases and donations from food stores, restaurants, catering organizations, community food projects, food redistribution organizations, and food aid charities. Community organizations are reliant on external funding to deliver a program of holiday provision (Mann et al, 2020). Prior research on food hubs in the U.S. that aim to improve food access in disadvantaged communities indicate that these food hubs are dependent on funding and suggest a need for long-term public support for these food system initiatives (Hoey et al, 2018).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In response to concerns about children experiencing holiday food insecurity, community groups, local authorities, schools and faith groups have established holiday clubs in economically deprived neighborhoods to provide free food and activities to children during the school holidays. Recent research on holiday provision has demonstrated a need to support families as a result of the increased financial hardship and risk of isolation during the school holidays (Graham et al, 2016, Mann et al, 2020 and identified a range of social, wellbeing, and health benefits for attendees (Defeyter et al, 2015;Graham et al, 2016;Holley et al, 2019;Morgan et al, 2019). More recently, governments across the devolved nations of the UK have pledged funding to support programs of holiday provision, albeit these funding initiatives vary in scale and are not evenly distributed among disadvantaged communities (Mann et al, 2018).…”

Section: Introduction and Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In the absence of statutory funding for holiday provision, community organizations rely upon a range of networks to help deliver this provision (Mann et al, 2020;Stretesky et al, 2020). Conversely, schools use the purchasing power of local authorities or multi-academy trusts to negotiate contracts and purchase food through catering organizations.…”

Section: Introduction and Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Procurement and delivery of food at holiday provision clubs

Mann

Widdison²,

Sattar

et al. 2021

J. Agric. Food Syst. Community Dev.

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While school food initiatives across England support children’s nutritional intake during school term time, there is no universal state provision during the school holidays to reduce the risk of children experiencing food insecurity. In the absence of a national program of holiday provision, community organizations in disadvantaged communities have established holiday clubs offering free food and activities to children. This paper examines how these holiday clubs source food and the challenges of procuring food and delivering healthy meals that adhere to UK School Food Standards. Results indicate that holiday clubs adopt a variety of procurement strategies including relying upon donated food. While club leaders have sought opportunities to source food cost-effectively, the findings suggest significant challenges for these clubs to achieve their aim of delivering healthy meals. Findings point to needs for sustainable funding and the developing healthy food procurement policies and processes that align with a wider food strategy.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 72%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introduction and Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introduction and Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Procurement and delivery of food at holiday provision clubs

Mann

Widdison²,

Sattar

et al. 2021

J. Agric. Food Syst. Community Dev.

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Parents and carers report that they adopt a range of strategies to ensure their children are able to eat during the summer break. Strategies include compromising their own nutritional intake, reducing portion sizes, buying cheaper food items to bulk out meals, eating children's leftovers and, in anticipation of the pressures they will face to ensure their children eat, stockpiling food before the holidays begin ( 5 , 6 , 8 , 13 , 21 , 22 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Food Insecurity: A Constant Factor in the Lives of Low-Income Families in Scotland and England

Shinwell

Defeyter

2021

Front. Public Health

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During the school summer holidays, pressures on the already tight budgets of low-income families are compounded, particularly when the safety net of free school meals is removed. The main aim of the current study was to investigate how low-income parents and carers feed their families during term time when children receive free school meals and if, and how, strategies differ during the school summer holidays. A secondary aim was to investigate the role of holiday activity and food programmes in supporting parents and carers to feed their children during the school summer holidays. We used purposive sampling to recruit a total of 21 parents (N = 20 Female, N = 1 Male) whose children attended free summer holiday clubs in Scotland and England during summer 2017. Participants were asked about their food and shopping habits during the school term and if, and how they differed during the school summer holidays when free school meals were not available. The findings suggest that food insecurity is a constant factor in the lives of low-income parents in England and Scotland, and that the stages of food insecurity and the strategies employed to mitigate its effects appear to be cyclical, aligning with the Food and Agriculture Organisation's (FAO) food insecurity continuum and the school academic year. During term time, parents and carers worried about food, suggesting they were experiencing mild food insecurity, despite their children being in receipt of free school meals. As the school holidays approached, moderate food insecurity was experienced as parents reported that they began “provisioning,” storing food and reducing household expenditure. During the summer holidays, food did not last, and parental food acquisition habits became more intense. Parents downgraded food brands and bought reduced price items of food. Ultimately, parents self-sacrificed their own nutritional intake by only buying food their children would eat and parents often skipped meals or only ate their children's leftovers. However, children's attendance at holiday club helped make the food at home last longer and once school resumed, parents returned to their less intense, but constantly coping approach to food shopping. The findings of this study suggest that food insecurity is a constant factor in the lives of low-income families who simply do not have enough household income to prevent them from experiencing food insecurity, even when initiatives such as free school meals and access to holiday club provision with food and activities are in place.

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‘In most supermarkets food does not cost £3 per day …’ The impact of the school food voucher scheme during COVID‐19

Lalli

2022

British Educational Res J

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Households with children eligible for Free School Meals are at risk of food insecurity. This paper reports on a rapid‐response study that investigated the impact of the school food voucher scheme during the COVID‐19 crisis on young people, families and schools. It pays close attention to the reliance of the state on the goodwill of society and its citizens in feeding those most in need. The Capabilities Approach is used to highlight factors that inhibited and restricted the use of the vouchers to produce the capability of having good nutrition for children in need of Free School Meals. The approach moves towards creating a society where children and young people are able to lead a life of their own choice and contribute to key policy decisions. This qualitative study funded by the British Education Research Association was conducted between September 2020 and March 2021. The study posed two research questions: (1) how have schools responded to COVID‐19 in relation to food during holiday provision; and (2) what have families identified as barriers to accessing the school food voucher scheme? Data collection involved online interviews with young people, schools and organisations (i.e. public health, director from the food industry. etc.). The findings highlight the difficulties with accessing and using the school food voucher and implications for future policy directions. Owing to this being a small‐scale study, it is not generalisable to the wider population but does highlight localised issues.

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Implementing Holiday Provision Programmes: A Qualitative Investigation of the Experiences of Senior Stakeholders

Cited by 8 publications

References 24 publications

Procurement and delivery of food at holiday provision clubs

Procurement and delivery of food at holiday provision clubs

Food Insecurity: A Constant Factor in the Lives of Low-Income Families in Scotland and England

‘In most supermarkets food does not cost £3 per day …’ The impact of the school food voucher scheme during COVID‐19

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