Labour councillors have asked for an apology to be made to hard up parents who missed out on summer food vouchers.

They said they want Medway Council to recognise mistakes were made after being wrongly given reassurances that half term vouchers would be available in the summer break.

The comments were made after Medway Labour Group presented a petition signed by over 1,000 people to the council calling on it to reinstate the vouchers, which could be spent at supermarkets.

They had been available during school holidays to families whose children were eligible for free school meals, and were introduced during the pandemic.

The decision to stop providing the vouchers was made using the council leader Alan Jarrett's urgency powers in late April.

The council said children would be able to access an activities programme over half term which would include a hot meal.

It also said parents who were struggling could apply for help via the Household Support Fund.

During a meeting of the council's children and young people overview and scrutiny committee last night (Thursday, September 29) the fund was criticised by lead petitioner Cllr Clive Johnson (Lab) for being "bureaucratic".

He explained how applying for the fund involved sharing income and expenditure information , as well as bank statements for all accounts in the household.

The applicant would have to prove they had less than £500 in their bank account in order to qualify.

He also said whilst he supported the MedwayGo activities programme, it didn't have enough spaces for the 11,000 children in Medway who are on free school meals.

Other councils - including Kent County Council - had allowed parents access to the vouchers over the summer.

"This decision had serious, real-world consequences for Medway families"

The Gillingham South representative said: "In collecting signatures, we spoke to many people whose lives and plans were disrupted.

"People who did not know that vouchers would not be issued for the first time in two years, and were panicking about how they would survive the summer.

"This decision had serious, real-world consequences for Medway families and the most vulnerable families at that."

He also said he was concerned about how the decision was communicated to schools, and in turn parents, adding how councillors themselves were given multiple reassurances that the vouchers would continue over the summer, only to find out this was not the case.

He said: "When officers were questioned in the summer term about vouchers, they said they would continue.

"We had an officer at the children's committee during the summer who very directly said that the voucher system would continue."

Cllr Pat Cooper (Lab) said: "An apology should be forthcoming to us, if not all parents and carers, about the misinformation because our campaign has hinged on this information, as well as Cllr Jarrett's actions."

James Williams, the council's director of public health, explained how parents were able to apply to the Household Support Fund - which would allow them to spend the money not just on food, but also utilities and clothes - and make use of the MedwayGo programme if they wished.

He said schools were told about the decision to end the vouchers - which were worth around £15 per week depending on how many children in the houshold - at the beginning of May, but said: "We need to do better if the information hasn't landed and people were not aware of all of that."

He added how activities were available five days a week and there were 32,000 possible opportunities for children to take part.

A University of Kent study will evaluate the effectiveness of the scheme, the uptake for which accounted for 25% of eligible children.

A finance officer also on hand to explain how £350,000 from the government's Household Support Fund - which went unclaimed - had been returned, saying it was "regrettable."