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Over this week’s school half-term break, Sefton Council will once again be providing eligible local families with holiday meal vouchers.

In-store and online

Now worth £25 per week for each child, the vouchers can be used to buy food in-store and online at local supermarkets. They also include £10 to support people’s expenditure on fuel and energy in the face of rocketing prices.

The vouchers, which the Council is providing through its Household Support Grant funding allocation from the Department of Work and Pensions, cannot be used to purchase alcohol, tobacco, lottery tickets, phone top ups or stamps.

Sefton Council provided similar voucher schemes over last year’s school holiday periods and will be doing so again during the Easter holidays in April.

Step in

Cllr Trish Hardy, Sefton Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities and Housing said: “I am pleased that the Council is once again able to step in and support families through this week’s half term holiday at a time when many are facing rising prices in the shops, a huge jump in fuel costs and, in many cases, still coping with the Government’s £20 a week cut in Universal Credit payments.

“Since the start of the COIVID-19 pandemic the Council has seen a steep rise in the numbers of children eligible for free school meals.

“Sefton Families that don’t receive free school meals at the moment but think they might qualify should visit www.sefton.gov.uk/freeschoolmeals.”

Find out more here.

Apprentices employed by Sefton Council, took the opportunity to share their experiences at a recent virtual ‘Meet and Greet’ with local councillors ahead of National Apprenticeship Week.

With apprenticeships spanning health and social care, energy and environment, HGV driving and more besides, the Councillors, including Council Leader Ian Maher, joined by Chief Executive Dwayne Johnson, took the opportunity to listen to the stories of staff who took part and to celebrate not only their achievements, but also Sefton Council’s strong record of developing apprentices and retaining them at the local authority.    

National Apprenticeship Week takes place 7-13 February. Organisations throughout the UK will celebrate apprenticeships and apprentices, by sharing their successes and busting common myths.

Sefton Council will mark the week with a series of drop-in sessions for its staff to hear about apprenticeships available to them, as well as a series of case studies to be shared with residents in the hope of inspiring more people to take this route to further their career prospects.

In attendance at the ‘Meet and Greet’ with councillors, was Macy Loasby, who recently secured a full-time position in the local authority’s security service, having gained a Level 2 qualification in Business Administration. Macy said:

“Taking up my apprenticeship has been an amazing experience for me and has given me a clear pathway to a career I want to pursue. I’m now studying for my Level 3 apprenticeship while working for the Council and am excited for what the future holds. It’s been hard work up to now, but totally rewarding and something I would encourage anyone to do.”

Councillor Paulette Lappin, Cabinet Member for Regulatory, Compliance and Corporate Services, said: 

“Speaking to apprentices throughout the year I’m always inspired hearing where they’ve come from and what they’re achieving, even more so in the last two years when working conditions, and the way we work, has been so greatly altered. They deserve great credit for their ability to adapt in such trying circumstances, as well as for their skill, passion and hard work.

“What some people I speak to don’t realise, is how challenging an apprenticeship is, and in many cases how academic – it’s very far from an easy route into the career of your choice, but it is an enjoyable and effective one.

“Whether you’re starting out on your career, or want to change your career path, then give apprenticeships serious consideration, as the chances are there will be one to suit you and the direction you want to take.”

To find out more about apprenticeships in Sefton, visit the Sefton Apprenticeships webpage or email Sefton Council’s Apprenticeship team.

To find out more about National Apprenticeship Week and how you can support it, visit the National Apprenticeship Week website.