by Rebecca Hannant
East Riding Council has announced its Easter Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme, offering more than 200 activities for children across the area.
The programme includes a wide range of sessions from sports camps, crafts, pony trekking and go-karting, to SEND-specific water sports and hi-rope aerial adventures.
Children aged four to 16 can access activities at numerous locations across the East Riding this Easter.
Families in receipt of benefits related free school meals or council tax support can access the activities free of charge. All HAF activities are available to other families on a paid-for basis, and this will vary by activity and provider.
Parents and carers can express their interest in the holiday activities on the new booking system now by visiting eequ.org/eastridinghaf, with bookings opening on Monday, March 16, at 2pm.
Councillor Victoria Aitken, cabinet member for children, families and education said: “The Holiday Activities and Food programme enables children from low-income households to enjoy a healthy meal and enriching, fun activities for free across the East Riding.
“Our providers also offer paid-for places for other families who would like to get involved. There’s once again a great range of activities for children of all ages to enjoy, from sports, music and dance to craft, nature activities and animal encounters.”
Mid Holderness councillor Samantha Christon-Whyte has also welcomed changes to the programme, which previously omitted children with parents not on means-tested benefits despite spaces still being available.
Last summer she raised the issue during a meeting of the council’s Children and Young People Overview and Scrutiny Committee, highlighting differences between the East Riding programme and neighbouring Hull, where families not eligible for free school meals could access activities if spaces were available.
She argued that allowing families to book paid places would help more children take part in holiday activities.
The change means that while children eligible for benefits-related free school meals or council tax support will continue to receive free places, other families will now be able to book places on a paid-for basis where spaces are available.
Cllr Christon-Whyte said: “Holiday activities like these make a real difference for children and families during the school holidays.
“The East Riding HAF programme already provides fantastic opportunities, but it was frustrating to see sessions with empty spaces that other children could not access. As a parent living close to the Hull boundary, I could see that Hull had taken a more flexible approach.
“I raised this through the scrutiny process and asked whether we could adopt something similar here so that more children could take part while still protecting the free places for families who need them most.
“I’m pleased that the HAF team listened and that the programme has now introduced paid places where spaces are available.”