School Essentials Grant funding for the 2022/23 academic year is open to applications.
2022/23 funding is now open to applications until 30/06/2023.
We have put together some frequently asked questions (FAQ’s) below.
Please read these carefully before applying.
You can apply for a School Essentials Grant for children starting the following years in September 2022:
Reception, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 & 11
Looked after (foster care) children can qualify in any academic year.
In order to be eligible to apply, parents must already be in receipt of, or applying for Free School Meals (eFSM) based on the following income;
• Income Support,
• Income Based Jobseekers Allowance,
• Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999,
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance,
• Child Tax Credit,
• provided they are not entitled to Working Tax Credit and their annual income does not exceed £16,190,
• Guarantee element of State Pension Credit,
• Working Tax Credit 'run-on' - the payment someone may receive for a further four weeks after they stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit or Universal Credit.
• Universal credit(If earned income is included in the assessment of UC it must be less than £616.66)
The Funding is also available to all looked after children (Foster Care) of compulsory school age and pupils with no recourse to public funds.
For Enquires Email: FreeSchoolMeals@flintshire.gov.uk
You must complete an online form to apply for School Essentials grants.
FAQ
Why do I have to apply? Can you not just pay me for my children that are eligible?
No – The grants we administer are funded by WG and our grant conditions confirm we have to receive an application from the parent. We also have to retain these for audit purposes and to prove we are paying only for children whose parents meet the eligibility criteria. We also need to be able to obtain parents bank account details, to enable us to pay the grant money to them. We cannot do this without an application form.
I need more information or I need to check if I’ve claimed before.
We would kindly ask parents to email us at FreeSchoolMeals@flintshire.gov.uk to find out. We aim to respond to emails within 48 hours.
How much money will I get?
For 2022/23 only (up to June 2023), WG have increased the amount for each year by £100. This means the money you will get per eligible child is as follows:
All qualifying years except year 7 = £225.00
Year 7 = £300
Why can I not claim for 6th form (years 12 & 13)?
As these years are additional to compulsory years of education, it is not funded by WG.
My child receives the new, Universal Primary Free School Meals (UPFSM). Does this mean I qualify for a School Essentials Grant?
No – We have a webpage that explains why in detail, please look at bullet point 2 on the following link:
www.flintshire.gov.uk/en/Resident/Schools/Free-School-Meals.aspx
Uniform Grant seems to be called a few things, such as PDG (Pupil Deprivation Grant) and school essentials. Why is this?
The official term the government and Council’s use is PDG but parents tend to know it as uniform grant, which is why we call it this on our website and application form. You may have seen the term ‘school essentials’ more recently and this has come from Welsh Government (WG). It is likely that the term uniform grant will be rebranded as school essentials in future.