February half term 2026

HAF Programme Overview

Since 2021, the DFE have funded the Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) Programme via local authorities in England. Local authorities coordinate free holiday provision with a healthy meal and enriching activities for children eligible for means tested Free School Meals (FSM). The Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme is currently delivered during the three main school holiday periods.

We are pleased to announce that the grant funding from the DfE has been extended for a further 3 years and is now due to complete at the end of March 2029.

This year, the DfE have given councils the option to use any underspend from the 2025 delivery to fund sessions over the half term holidays. West Sussex will be using this underspend to fund sessions during the February half term 2026.

What providers need to consider:

For more information on the national programme please visit the Government's website (opens in new window).

West Sussex County Council will only be accepting bids for the February 2026 Half Term HAF Programme.

The following expectations from the Department for Education (DfE) need to be considered:

• HAF provision is for children in receipt of benefit related Free School Meals
• Eligible children should be able to access
  • Half Term - at least four hours of provision a day, for two days.

There is flexibility on how the equivalent level of provision is delivered during each holiday and the 2 days do not have to run consecutively and can be split across the whole holiday. West Sussex will no longer accept bids that exceed the number of days outlined above.

Face-to-face provision with a hot meal remains the central priority for the council, and in the first instance we are looking for offers of two days of face-to-face holiday clubs where that is possible.

The council is interested in proposals from providers who can deliver within one or more areas in the county, and from providers who would be interested in 'scaling up' their current provision, to meet the needs of a wider cohort of children and families within West Sussex.

If you chose to deliver activities only, you will be paired with a pre-approved catering service to deliver the food element of the HAF programme.

Please note, providers must be able to meet the following criteria to be eligible for February half term 2026 delivery:

• Must have delivered HAF during Easter, Summer or Winter 2025.
• There is a short turn around for data returns. Providers must be able to commit to returning all data by 25th February 2026.
• Due to limited budgets, a price cap of £35 per child per session is in place.

The grant allocation process:

Proposals must be submitted using the online Expression of Interest (EOI). This will enable us to award grants in an efficient and transparent manner according to agreed funding specifications.

Your EOI should include:

• A clear proposal of your activity and how you will meet the HAF Framework of Standards (opens in new window)
• Self-Assessment on your Policies and Procedures
• Funding Template (downloadable on the right)
• Example activity plans
• Example Menus

We recommend that you have all the necessary documentation ready to attach before you start completing the online EOI form.

The deadlines to submit an EOI form are listed below. Please note the change in closing time from previous EOI's.

Data Protection:

The HAF Team will use this survey to collect some personal data (e.g., name, email address) the process of which is necessary for the performance of a contract with the data subject or to take steps to enter into a contract. You do not have to answer these survey questions but the information you do supply will be processed in accordance with the 2018 Data Protection Act and the General Data Protection Regulations, and any subsequent relevant legislation. West Sussex County Council will not share any personal information collected as part of this survey. The information will be held electronically for a period of three years/months before being appropriately destroyed.

The information you provide will be used for statistical analysis, management, planning and the provision of services by the County Council and its partners. It will not be used for any other purpose without your prior consent. West Sussex County Council is registered as Data Controller (Reg. No. Z6413427). For further details and information about our Data Controller, please see our Data Privacy Policy (opens in new window)).

Equality, diversity, and inclusion:

Providers will be asked to consider and identify how they propose to meet the needs of diverse groups i.e. food provision which cater for religious beliefs, activities which are gender-aware and inclusive for children with additional needs or disabilities.

How to get your questions answered:

If you have questions about the programme please get in touch to find out more about the programme or with any queries. You can contact us via email at HAF@westsussex.gov.uk.

Accessibility statement

If you require any of this information in an alternative format, then please contact us via email at HAF@westsussex.gov.uk or by telephone on 0330 222 4144 and we will do our best to assist you. If you are deaf or hard of hearing and have an NGT texting app installed on your computer, laptop or smartphone, you can contact us on 18001 0330 222 4144.

We are committed to making this website accessible, in accordance with the Public Sector Bodies (Websites and Mobile Applications) (No. 2) Accessibility Regulations 2018. Please view the West Sussex County Council Accessibility Statement (opens in new window) for further details. Information about the accessibility of the Your Voice Engagement Hub can be found by clicking on the 'Accessibility tab' which can be found at the bottom of this page. Where it exists, we will provide details of any project related content which is not fully accessible under a heading of 'Non-accessible content' below.

We are always looking to improve the accessibility of this website. If you find any problems not listed on this page or think we’re not meeting accessibility requirements, please contact us at haveyoursay@westsussex.gov.uk.