How do we apply?
We ask all providers to complete our application form via weblink. Due to the tight turnaround of delivery dates, late applications cannot be accepted.
How much will you pay us per child per session – including their food?
We anticipate an average of £20 per place per session, but cost will differ depending on age, activity type, needs, rurality etc.
We would expect cost per head for food to be no more than £4.50.
How will you decide who is allocated a grant?
We want to provide funding to as many providers as possible who meet our due diligence requirements.
For those that do, we want to ensure a diverse offer that considers locality, age range and inclusion.
We will also be looking to ensure high quality and best value for our young people.
A panel of representatives from a range of organisations will assess each application and decide how the funding is allocated.
Payment
50% of the agreed amount will be paid prior to delivery. Further payment will be paid after delivery for each attended place, up to 100% of the agreed amount. The remaining funding will be paid per head at the agreed amount per place based on attendance results.
What is the expected number of sessions we have to deliver during the HAF programme?
We are particularly interested in providers that can offer four days of at least four-hour sessions over the winter and Easter school holidays and 16 days of at least four-hour sessions over the summer school holidays.
However, if you can offer fewer days of activities, we welcome this, as we want to schedule a comprehensive programme of activities. Children and young people do not need to attend the same venue or activity throughout the holidays.
Our venue does not have a kitchen – can we apply?
Yes. Meals should be hot, but they don’t have to be prepared on site. Meals delivered to the venue are permitted so long as they are hot and meet the relevant food standards. We encourage partnerships between organisations to meet the HAF objectives. We will require full details of your caterer as part of your application. Please ensure you have secured a caterer before you apply, as incomplete applications will not be submitted to panel.
What qualifications do our staff/volunteers need to serve hot food?
See “Food Business Registration – Guidance for HAF Providers” document.
I am looking to set up a new provision which will include capital costs – can you help?
The HAF grant funding is not intended to cover capital costs, however relevant and essential equipment/resources can be considered.
Do all sessions have to be pre-booked?
We would strongly advise pre-booking. It is essential that the programme is targeted at eligible children and young people.
All HAF attendees must be registered on the Eequ booking system, so it is in the provider’s best interest for places to be pre‑booked.
We run an activity centre outside of Oldham – can we apply?
We are seeking provision within Oldham. If you are delivering within the Oldham borough at an accessible venue all applications will be considered.
Do we need to offer places to all age groups?
No, unless you wish to expand your existing offer to the full 5 – 16 years HAF age range and the activities you are proposing are suitable for all ages.
Our venue is in a rural area – will you fund travel?
To maximise value and reach, we want to focus funding on activities, not travel. However, we recognise the challenges of rural delivery and geographical isolation. We will take a pragmatic approach to ensure a range of provision across the borough. We ask that provision is within walking distance and accessible by public transport. We can consider transport costs if taking a group on a cultural or enriching activity trip.
How do we accommodate children with support needs?
We want the offer to be as inclusive as possible, so we expect providers to enable children with support needs to access activities. Support can be provided in several ways:
- Asking the parent/carer to stay if the child’s needs are complex or require medication.
- Employing support staff to enable participation.
Do all aspects of HAF have to be met?
Yes. All the below stated standards must be met for every day of HAF provision.
- A healthy and hot meal
- An enriching activity. This should be an activity that helps to develop new skills or knowledge, consolidates existing skills and knowledge, tries new experiences
- A physical activity. This should be moderate to vigorous for at least 60 minutes per day
- An opportunity to increase awareness of healthy eating, healthy lifestyles and/or positive behaviours
- Signposting and referrals to support families
I already run a holiday club with a set programme of activities, how can I encompass nutritional education into my sessions?
Education on nutrition is an integral part of the HAF programme, however, HAF is not school. For children and young people to learn about health and nutrition it will have a greater impact if the information is delivered in an informal way as we are not expecting providers to set up formal learning.
Please think about how you can incorporate a conversation, activities, or games about healthy choices into your sessions.
What if a child has booked but does not show up?
We strongly advise providers to communicate with parents/carers and follow up on non‑attendance. Providers should have a text/email reminder system to minimise no‑shows. We recommend overbooking provision to offset the impact of no‑shows.
Can we offer spaces to children who aren’t in receipt of free school meals?
This grant can only cover the costs of children in receipt of targeted free school meals. Additional spaces may be offered on a paid‑for basis or funded through alternative sources. To ensure a high‑quality, stigma‑free experience, all children must receive the same food offer and be treated equally.
What reporting information do we need to give and when will you need this?
All reporting is compiled through the Eequ booking system. Each HAF attendance must be registered. We will need the following data:
- Child name
- Date of birth
- Postcode
- School attended (if possible)
What age groups does the programme cover?
The programme covers children aged 5-16 years who are eligible for targeted free school meals.
What policies and insurance do I need to be eligible to apply for a grant?
The Grant application includes a checklist. To summarise, you will need:
- Public Liability (minimum £10 million) and Employer’s Liability Insurance (minimum £5 million)
- Safeguarding/Child Protection Policy
- Staff Enhanced DBS Certificates
- Equality and Diversity Policy
- Health and Safety Policy
- Risk Assessments for all relevant activities
- Food Hygiene Level 2 Certificate (if preparing meals yourself or by an external provider)
Do we promote the HAF programme ourselves?
Yes. We encourage providers to promote the programme through:
- Newsletters
- Word of mouth
- Your website
- Your social media channels*
When posting on social media we would encourage all providers to direct your audiences to www.oldham.gov.uk/HAF, use the hashtag #OldhamHAF and to copy us into your message @OldhamCouncil.
We will also ask you to share images of your activities with us so we can promote these on Oldham Council’s social media channels. You must have consent from the parent/guardian beforehand before emailing them to us at OldhamHAF@oldham.gov.uk
Detailed Guidance Notes
Name of organisation
Use the legal name of your organisation (as shown in your governing document). If your organisation is also known by other names, put these in brackets. If you are applying as a partnership, then this should be the name of the lead organisation.
Overview of organisation
Tell us about your organisation and its aims.
Address of organisation
The address should be the registered address of your organisation or in the case of a partnership application the lead organisation.
Organisation’s website
Insert the website and main active social media addresses of the lead organisation and of any organisations within the partnership.
Email address of Main Contact Person
This should be a member of your organisation with detailed knowledge of your application. All correspondence about Oldham HAF will be sent to this address. Some information will need to be forwarded to other members of the organisation, such as training opportunities or promotional packs etc- it is the responsibility of the Main Contact Person to disseminate this information.
Venue address
This is so we can contact the venue directly if required and we also are aware where holiday activities are taking place
Summary of what you plan to deliver for the HAF programme?
This question is key to the Moderation Panel’s decision making. Please think about how your plan targets eligible participants. Also state how it will appeal to children and young people along with anything that makes your offer special.
Your detailed timetable. Please ensure that you include how the activities link to the guidance around healthy lifestyles and signposting
This should be an accurate reflection of the programme you intend to run. Please do not include examples. We understand that sometimes plans will need to change. You must inform us immediately if any aspect of the programme is different to the timetable. Enriching activities must be stated on this document. This document will make up part of the Quality Assurance visit process.
How many places will be available per session for FSM children and young people?
This question is in specific relation to children in receipt of means tested free school meals.
Will you be providing other places on the programme for non-eligible children and young people? (if “yes” please state how these will be funded including cost for privately paying families.)
The cost for HAF funded children and privately paying families should be comparable.
What dates are you delivering?
Ensure that you have checked the term dates of the schools surrounding the delivery venue and the dates you intend to deliver are in line with these.
What times are you delivering (start and finish)?
This must be at least 4 hours although longer sessions are encouraged.
What age range will your provision cater for?
Primary, secondary or a specific age range for example:- 8years- 14 years.
Please tell us about the food that you will serve. This must be healthy and served hot
How will you source, prepare and provide children and young people with a nutritious healthy meal during each day of your project?
Please be very specific in how your provision will source, prepare and provide a minimum of one healthy nutritious meal per day whilst attending your provision.
You may want to develop key partnerships with other service providers to source and provide food.
Children and young people must be offered school standard meals. These must be served hot.
This document will make up part of the Quality Assurance visit process.
The following link will help you to understand the school food standards:
- School-Food-Standards-Guidance- https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/school-food-standards-resources-for-schools/school-food-standards-practical-guide
Please tell us about the activities you intend to offer and explain how they are enriching, including information about any external agencies you intend to work with:
How do the planned sessions meet the HAF Programme's standards around physical activities
Holiday provision must provide fun and enriching activities that provide children with opportunities to develop or consolidate skills or knowledge, Provision must provide physical activities for at least one hour per day as recommended by the Department of Health and Social Care Physical Activity Guidelines on a daily basis.
What activities are planned around healthy eating, healthy lifestyles and/or positive behaviours
We need to understand how you will provide nutritional education and learning to children and young people who attend your project. This does not have to be a formal approach in the way you deliver this part of the HAF programme.
However, we expect organisations to be creative in the way they build this into their project.
Please tell us about how you will engage with families and carers:
As above, we expect your provision to be able to offer the parents and carers nutritional education and advice. Again, this does not have to be a formal approach in delivering this HAF objective and could include; for example, children and young people designing a brochure or menu cards for making healthy, nutritious, value for money meals that can be sent home so families can make meals together.
Alternatively, you could through your partnerships, develop a more generic approach and subcontract this work which would allow a number of organisations to refer parents and carers to an organisation who would deliver this objective of the HAF programme.
We are interested to know about creative and practicable approaches to deliver this part of the programme and how this will shape delivery of similar programmes in the future.
What specific measures have you planned around signposting and referrals for families:
Please let us know how your provision will be able to provide sufficient information for parents and carers that will effectively signpost to local advice and support services.
Your organisation should be able to signpost and have the knowledge of local support services that would be beneficial for the families of the children and young people who attend your project. For example, referring to a local youth and play provider, early help, or other summer offers
Please upload your detailed budget proposal
Complete the attached table showing a breakdown of your expenditure directly related to this application, e.g. staffing, rent, stationery, equipment. If you include running costs, itemise these.
In this section you need to tell us exactly how you will spend the grant that you are asking for.
Where you are asking for a contribution to core costs or management costs, please detail these, i.e. not as a percentage.
All costs must be reasonable, and it must be clear how all expenditure directly meets the objectives of the HAF programme and more significantly the needs of children and young people
What is the total amount of funding you are requesting from HAF
This should be the exact same amount stated in your budget proposal document.
Will you be using funding from any other sources, if so please tell us about this?
If you are applying for part-funding of a larger set of activities then tell us the cost of the larger set of activities here.
If the grant amount requested is less than the total cost of the activities then identify where the difference will come from and whether you have secured this funding.
We understand and value that voluntary and community organisations often put together funding from many sources to run a set of activities. Tell us how you are achieving this and any plans you have to raise funding not yet secured.
How will your provision be inclusive to everyone, including children with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND)?:
It is expected that providers, as a minimum are accessible and inclusive including ensuring that all staff are appropriately trained to deliver high quality, accessible and inclusive provision
How are you informed about specific dietary requirements and allergies?
This may be via email or booking form. This information must be requested from parents and should be stored securely. Free allergy training can be found here:-
https://www.food.gov.uk/business-guidance/online-food-safety-training
Please tell us the name of the organisation preparing your hot food and its star rating?:
Please confirm that the organisation preparing your hot food will do so in line with the school meal standards:
Only applications that meet the school meal standards will be considered.
A condition of the funding is that all providers use the HAF programme's standard data collection and monitoring. This will include collecting names, address and DOB of participants. Data collection will be via the Eequ Booking system. Do you commit to using the Eequ booking system for all HAF attendees?
Only applicants who commit to using the Eequ booking system can be considered.
Policies
All providers must be able to demonstrate and explain their safeguarding arrangements and have relevant and appropriate policies and procedures in place in relation to; safeguarding, health and safety, public liability insurance, accessibility and inclusiveness.