Grocery workers can apply for £150 Back To School Grant

A charity supporting grocery industry workers is making £1 million available to help families with back-to-school costs, with applications opening next week. GroceryAid's School Essentials Grant offers £150 per school-age child, for up to three children per household, and does not have to be paid back.

Applications open at 9am on Tuesday 2 June 2026 and close at 5pm on Thursday 4 June 2026. To be eligible, applicants must work in the grocery industry and have done so for six months or more. Successful applicants will be selected at random from those who meet the criteria and submit the correct documentation.

The grant is open to workers throughout the grocery sector, including supermarkets, wholesalers, manufacturers, suppliers, convenience stores and independent retailers. It is supported by The Leverhulme Trade Charities Trust.

Kieran Hemsworth, Chief Executive of GroceryAid, said: "We know the summer holidays can be stressful. For families who are already juggling childcare and rising household costs, the back-to-school shop is a big expense."

He added: "We hope the School Essentials Grant can help ease some of that pressure for those working in grocery who do so much to keep supermarket shelves stocked and the nation fed, while giving children a confident start to the new school year. This is the helping hand grocery workers have earned."

Previous recipients have described what the grant meant to them. One said: "We have three children at secondary school; the grants mean they can all have good quality footwear for winter, new uniforms, and the summer holiday won't be ruined by us parents watching the pennies." Another added: "The struggles at the moment are very real. To have an amazing bit of extra help that I did not expect, will without a doubt, help immensely."

GroceryAid also offers a range of other financial grants for those struggling due to an unexpected drop in income, a traumatic event or a relationship breakdown. Last year the charity provided more than £4.6 million in financial grants to grocery workers.

Hemsworth said: "Even if you aren't successful with your School Essentials Grant application, you may still be eligible for another financial grant from GroceryAid to provide relief in tough times. It's well worth applying; there's absolutely no cost so there's nothing to lose. Wider support is also available for the family such as family counselling and funded counselling for children and young people, all completely free and confidential."

Families are being urged to prepare documents in advance ahead of the short application window. Full details and applications are available at groceryaid.org.uk