This summer, Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief have committed to donating over £2.5m, to help children and families with access to nutritious food, by providing over one million meals in the school holidays.
The retailer and Comic Relief are funding organisations that will provide healthy meals and free activities for children over the summer break, and also help to launch new food club hubs, running all-year-around to provide long-term solutions.
Throughout July, Sainsbury’s will donate over £2.5m via its products, including a 25p donation for every purchase of selected fruit and vegetables, and a brand partnership donation with Dolmio. Customers are also encouraged to donate in-store and online, with this funding helping those families most in need.
Sainsbury’s is also running a kids eat free initiative in Sainsbury’s Cafés from 15th July - 3rd September, and will have committed to donating over £4.2m to supporting children with access to nutritious food, through donations to Comic Relief this spring and summer.
Wednesday 17th July 2024: This summer, Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief have committed to donating over £2.5m, to help children and families with access to nutritious food by providing over one million meals in the school holidays.
The retailer and Comic Relief are also working together to fund organisations such as Feeding Britain, The Bread and Butter Thing and London Community Foundations, who will provide healthy meals and free enriching activities for children over the summer break. The funding will also help launch five new food club hubs, which will run all-year-around and provide long-term solutions to help improve families’ access to food during the holidays and beyond.
There are currently 900,000 children in England who are experiencing food poverty but aren't eligible for free school meals, while those who do receive them are only supported by the government's Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme for four weeks of the six-week break, highlighting the pressing need for extra support.
Additionally, research by the Department of Education found that during school holiday breaks, children from low-income households are less likely to take part in organised out-of-school activities, are more likely to have ‘unhealthy holidays’ due to lack of nutrition and physical health and are also more likely to be socially isolated.1
Throughout July, Sainsbury’s is rallying its customers to help them on their mission. Until 23rd July, the supermarket will donate 25p to Comic Relief for every purchase of selected fruit and veg, from cherry tomatoes to easy peelers and sweet peppers. Additionally, until 30th July, its supplier Mars Food will donate £100k to Comic Relief from the proceeds of all Dolmio product sales in Sainsbury’s.
Customers are also encouraged to donate what they can at tills, online or via Nectar. A donation of just £2.50 could help to provide a child with a healthy and nutritious meal.
Wider initiatives in place over the school holidays include kids eating for free in Sainsbury’s Cafés from 15th July - 3rd of September, with the purchase of any adult hot main meal. This promotion alone is expected to give away approximately 18,000 kids meals, either hot meals or lunch bags. 2
Ruth Cranston, Director of Corporate Responsibility & Sustainability at Sainsbury's, says: “We know that the school holidays are a difficult time for many families, especially for children who aren’t eligible for free school meals. This is where our Nourish the Nation programme comes into play, with the aim of turning the school holiday experience from one of surviving to thriving.
“Working with Comic Relief, we’re able to provide nourishing meals and activities throughout the school holidays. The work of the organisations we’re funding will be transformative to the lives of so many families across the country, ensuring that children return to school well-fed and ready to learn.
“In total this Spring and Summer, we will have committed to donating over £4.2m3 to supporting children with access to nutritious food, through donations to Comic Relief. We hope that all the funding will help towards building lasting change for these children and their families.”
This activity builds on the incredible work that Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief have already achieved, with this year marking the partnership’s 25th anniversary. In that time the supermarket has raised more than £170m, including over £9.2m in the last year alone.
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Notes to Editors:
1 Usually, adult hot main meals cost £5.50 and kids meals cost £3.50, so customers with children will be saving £3.50
2 This figure has been calculated based on a £1.7m donation that has already been made to support children this summer through The Bread and Butter Thing, Feeding Britain and London Community Foundations, and a £2.5m donation that will be made to support children in future school holidays
3 This figure has been calculated based on a £1.7m donation that has already been made to support children this summer through The Bread and Butter Thing, Feeding Britain and London Community Foundations, and a £2.5m donation that will be made to support children in future school holidays
About Nourish the Nation
Sainsbury's and Comic Relief have been partners for 25 years, raising over £170 million to support people in the UK and around the world. Working closely with Comic Relief, Nourish the Nation is Sainsbury's long-term community programme focused on tackling food poverty and ensuring communities have improved access to balanced, nutritional, and sustainable food sources now and in the future.
Since its initial launch, Sainsbury’s have introduced a number of Nourish the Nation initiatives to help fund the vital work of Comic Relief and its partners. Last summer, Sainsbury’s donated 50p from every product sold in its Inspired to Cook range, contributing a total of £3 million towards its Nourish the Nation programme.
Customers are also able to donate to the programme in Sainsbury's stores and online, or on the Comic Relief website, and can select a donation of £1, £2, £5 and £10 where all monetary donations go directly to Comic Relief.
About Comic Relief
Comic Relief is a UK charity that uses the power of entertainment and popular culture to work towards a vision of a just world free from poverty. We raise money to support organisations that are closest to the communities who can make change happen. We support work that will tackle the impact of poverty, injustice, conflict, and climate change in the UK and around the world.
Since launching in 1985, we have raised over £1.6 billion thanks to the huge generosity and kindness of the public and our partners. For more information on our work, visit www.comicrelief.com or follow @comicrelief on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok for the latest content and news.
Comic Relief is the operating name of Charity Projects, registered charity in England & Wales (326568) and Scotland (SC039730).
Comic Relief’s partnership with Sainsbury’s
Sainsbury's and Comic Relief have been partners for over 25 years, raising over £170 million to support people in the UK and around the world.
In 2022 we launched our new partnership programme, Nourish the Nation, working together with Sainsbury’s to fund initiatives designed to tackle food poverty across the UK - ensuring communities have improved access to balanced, nutritional, and sustainable food sources now and in the future.
We are doing this by funding projects and initiatives that:
Over the last 2 years, Sainsbury’s has raised over £14m to support brilliant initiatives across the UK, driving tangible impact in supporting communities experiencing food poverty:
This summer, Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief have committed to donating over £2.5m, provide over one million meals for children and families experiencing food poverty throughout the school holidays.
The money raised will go to some brilliant organisations, like Feeding Britain and The Bread and Butter Thing and London Community Foundations, who will provide healthy meals and free enriching activities for children over the summer break.
We’ll also help children build a few skills along the way with lots of free activities. Good food and fun – it’s all fuel for young bellies, bodies and brains over the holidays.
The funding will also help launch five new food club hubs, which will run all-year-around and provide long-term solutions to help improve families’ access to food during the holidays and beyond.
Quote
“Millions of people in the UK are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis and face impossible choices. Many are in need of help and support. Our Nourish the Nation programme, supported by our long-term partner Sainsbury's has never been more needed. We are proud to be working with a range of organisations and incredible individuals who are helping to make a difference in the lives of so many families and communities across the country.”
Context
There are currently 900,000 children in England who are experiencing food poverty but aren't eligible for free school meals, while those who do receive them are only supported by the government's Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme for four weeks of the six-week summer break, highlighting the pressing need for extra support.
Additionally, research by the Department of Education found that during school holiday breaks, children from low-income households are less likely to take part in organised out-of-school activities, are more likely to have ‘unhealthy holidays’ due to lack of nutrition and physical health and are also more likely to be socially isolated.
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