FREE school meals and activities are still available for school children during the Easter Holidays.

With schools in St Helens only due back after Easter on Monday, April 19, places are still available to support and entertain children eligible for free school meals through a Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme.

Managed by St Helens Borough Council’s Early Help service, provision of the programme has been outsourced to a number of voluntary and community sector providers with the aim of encouraging children and young people aged 4-18 to eat more healthily and be active while not in school.

Activities to date have included sports sessions delivered by Saints Community Development Foundation, with much, much more planned between now and Friday, April 16 - from water sports at Taylor Park to DJing, breakdancing and how to become an Instagrammer.

Each session includes healthy food for eligible children to enjoy.

Last year’s programme supported more than 2,700 people who accessed 91 activities on offer across the borough, with 2,053 meals distributed to children in attendance.

One family to benefit from the scheme said: “These sessions are amazing; we wouldn’t be able to afford to come out at all in the school holidays and this has given our family the chance to get away from what’s going on around us.

“It’s let us have some time out from the stress where we live, while the little one has some fun playing. More of this should be happening."

For more information, including a full activity calendar and how to book on a session, visit sthelens.gov.uk/holidayfun