Here2Help - help with food

If you need assistance with getting food we can help.

If you are struggling to pay for food for yourself and your family, there are a number of options.

Help for all households

You may find using food apps a useful way of saving money with food bills.

The BBC have a useful guide to apps to help you cut food waste and save cash. 

Help for low-income households

Free school meals

If you receive benefits or have a low income, your child may be eligible for free school meals.

Holiday vouchers for families with children in receipt of free school meals

Following changes to government funding, the Household Support Fund will be ending on 31 March 2026. This means the Council can no longer continue to provide the seasonal supermarket vouchers in the same way as it has done previously. 

 After negotiation with the government, councils across the UK have been granted permission to deliver one final round of the supermarket voucher scheme. In Solihull we have decided to provide this to families in time for the summer holidays and not this Easter, as we know the summer can be a period when families can experience greater financial challenges. Further details will be provided to families who are eligible to receive the vouchers nearer the time. 

In the interim, a range of extra help will continue to be available to families and can be found on the Council website here: Here2Help. This includes information on the Holiday Activity and Food Programme, local Family Hubs, food banks and social supermarkets, as well as several other discretionary crisis related schemes 

The Household Support Fund is being replaced by a new Crisis and Resilience Fund and under the rules of this new fund, all families will need to be assessed before additional help can be provided. More details will be available on the Council website in due course.

Holiday Activities and Food (HAF)

Families who are in receipt of benefit-related free school meals are also eligible to book school aged children, from reception to year 11, into HAF funded activities. Activities are free to access and include enjoyable activities and a healthy meal.

They will run during Easter, summer, and Christmas school holidays as well as some half term holidays.

Visit our HAF webpage.

Healthy start

If you’re more than ten weeks pregnant or have a child under four years old, you may be entitled to get help to buy healthy food and milk.

Visit the Healthy Start website

Help in an emergency

Foodbanks

A foodbank is for anyone in crisis, who does not have enough money to buy food for themselves or their family.

When you use a foodbank, you will be given enough food to feed yourself and your household for at least three days.

The following food banks in Solihull are supported by the Household Support Fund, funded by the Department for Work and Pensions:

Helping Hands

Helping Hands is an emergency food bank service. Emergency food parcels can be collected from our Family Hubs.

How to access

Helping Hands work on a referral basis only, if you or someone you know need to access this service, please call Solihull Council on 0121 704 8001 to request a referral.

We Care UK

We Care UK provides an emergency “out of hours” food parcel delivery service to support those who are facing an emergency or crisis.

Food parcel delivery times are anytime between 5.00pm to 10.00pm.

How to access

If you or someone you know need to use this service, please call Solihull Council on  0121 704 8001.

North Solihull Foodbank

Smiths Wood

  • address: Auckland Hall, 25 Sunbeam Close, Smiths Wood, B36 9JR
  • open: Tuesdays and Fridays from 12.30pm to 2.30pm

Shard End

  • address: Welcome Change Community Centre, Ownall Road, Shard End, B34 7AJ
  • open: Thursdays from 12.30pm to 2.30pm

Get in touch

How to access

Vouchers can be obtained through school support workers and agencies e.g.:

  • Help Through Hardship CAB on 0808 208 2138
  • Solihull Connect on 0121 704 8001
  • Age UK on 0121 709 7590