What is Best Start Foods? Will I get a card? How much will I receive? What can I buy with it? This is a benefit for soon-to-be mothers or those with children. Indeed, they are then able to buy healthy foods for them and their baby, to care for both their own and their baby’s health. Your Benefits will tell you all you need to know about Best Start Foods.

How much is Best Start Foods?

You may earn one of two rates. Indeed, you will either receive £4.50 or £9 weekly. How much you receive depends on a couple of factors:

• The age of your child;
• You being pregnant or not.

At the birth of your child, you will receive £9.00 weekly. Then, you will receive £4.50 weekly when the child is between 1 and 3 years old. If you have multiple childre, you will receive payments for every child. Indeed, there is no maximum number of children for which you can receive payments.

Apply for Best Start Foods

There are 3 different ways that you can apply for Best Start Foods: online, by phone or post. Online, you can apply via the Social Security Scotland website. By phone, you may call them on 0800 182 2222. They are available Monday to Friday, from 8am to 6pm. 

If you want to apply by post, you must first acquire a Best Start Grant and Foods application form. You can also claim with a Best Start Grant, Foods and Scottish Child Payment combined application form. You may download them on the mygov.scot website, linked above.

What is Best Start Foods?

Best Start Foods is a benefit for those living in Scotland, and who are on a low income. You may be eligible if you are a pregnant woman, or if you are a family with kids 3 years or older.

Your other benefit payments will not be affected if you start receiving Best Start Foods. Furthermore, you cannot use your card on everything, only on specific foods. More specifically, they are as follows:

• Fresh eggs;
• Tinned, dried or fresh pulses (they must not have any added ingredients, like flavouring, sugar, fat, salt, or others);
• Frozen, tinned or fresh vegetables and fruits (they must not have any added ingredients, like flavouring, sugar, fat, salt, or others);
• Ultra-heat treated, pasteurized or long like milk (it cannot have colour, flavours, chemicals or vitamins added or taken out);
• First infant formula milk (this does not include ‘follow on’ milk).

Can I get Best Start Foods?

Some things need to be true in order for you to be eligible to receive the Best Start Foods card.

First, you may be pregnant and younger than 18 years old. Then, the rules about residing in Scotland need to apply to you. Furthermore, you do not need to be earning benefits. Lastly, you can apply right when you learn about your pregnancy.

Second, you may be responsible for a child younger than one year old and you are younger than 18 years old. Then, the rules about residing in Scotland need to apply to you. Furthermore, you need to prove your responsibility for your child. This can be benefits you receive because of their eligibility.

What if I am older than 18 years old, or my child is older than one year old?

You may be responsible for a kid younger than 3 years old. In this case, you must receive a qualifying benefit (it can be either you or your partner). You may be 18 or 19 years old, and in training or education. Then, a person responsible for you need to get a qualifying benefit. 

If you are applying for Best Start Foods because you have a child under 3 years old, you will need to prove that you hold responsibility for them. You may do so in a couple of ways. Indeed, you could show your adoption certificate, or a benefit you receive for the child, for example.

You may be pregnant and 18 years or over. Then, you must live in Scotland and receive a qualifying benefit (either you or your partner can receive it). This is to show that you are on a low income. You may be 18 or 19 years old, and in training or education. Then, a person responsible for you need to get a qualifying benefit. 

Living in Scotland for Best Start Foods

You may live in Scotland. Then, in the majority of cases, you will be eligible for Best Start Foods. This is if you receive a qualifying benefit, if this is a needed requirement for your situation. 

You may not be a UK citizen. Furthermore, you might have been outside the UK for an extended period of time, while being a UK citizen. In this case, it’s likely you do not qualify for qualifying benefits, and thus for this Best Start Foods.

Best Start Foods if I have no access to public funds

Your immigration status may prevent you from being able to claim some benefits. However, you could still be eligible to get the Best Start Foods card, even if you have no access to public funds. However, some conditions need to apply to you. More specifically, all of the following:

• The reason for which you are unable to claim public funds is because of your immigration status;
• Your family receives £625 or fewer monthly after tax;
• You are personally responsible for at least one child who has a British citizenship and is under 3 years old.

If you cannot get state benefits, you will likely have to include some additional things in your application. More specifically, you will have to include additional documents. This is to show exactly what your situation is.

You can apply online, by post or by phone. This is the case if you cannot get state benefits. However, also note that this is not the case if you, for example, do not have a bank account. Then, you may not apply online.

Qualifying benefits for Best Start Foods

There are certain benefits that show that you are on a low income. Furthermore, to receive a Best Start Foods card, you often may need to receive such a benefit. They are the following:

• Income Support;
• Pension Credit;
• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA);
• Child Tax Credit: however, when you claimed this benefit, it must have been for your income being fewer than £17,005 annually;
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA);
• Housing Benefit: your income used to receive this benefit needs to have been fewer than £328 weekly;
• Universal Credit: the income you earned in the most recent assessment period (or the one previous to that) needs to have been equal to or less than £660 (this also applies if you made a joint claim);
• Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit: you must be considered to be working for a wage full-time or the income used to receive this benefit needs to have been fewer than £7,920.

You may have sent a claim for a qualifying benefit, but have not yet received a decision. However, you are still able to send in a claim to get the Best Start Foods card. However, you will not receive your Best Start Foods decision until you get your decision about your qualifying benefit.

What if me or my partner get Universal Credit or stop getting benefits?

You may receive Universal Credit. Then, your earned income needs to be a certain amount to get Best Start Foods. More specifically, equal to or fewer than £660. Indeed, this needs to be for either the latest period of assessment, or the period prior to this.

You may earn more than this during a period of assessment. In this case, you do not qualify for Best Start Foods. However, you will continue to receive the benefit for a while. More specifically, for 8 weeks until after your income increased.

Additionally, you may stop receiving a qualifying benefit. If this is the case, you need to contact Social Security Scotland and let them know of this. Otherwise, you could be sanctioned. You may also have to pay money that was considered as an ‘overpayment’.

However, within 12 weeks, you may begin to receive Universal Credit again. If this is the case, you must contact Social Security Scotland to let them know. Then, they will be able to make you earn Best Start Foods again, and you won’t have to apply one more time. 

What is Best Start Grant?

If you are eligible for Best Start Foods, you should also apply to Best Start Grant. This benefit consists of 3 different payments for low-income families. They are as follows:

• Pregnancy and Baby Payment: this is either for someone with a baby no older than 6 months, or a person who is more than 24 weeks pregnant;
• Early Learning Payment: for some with a child between 2 and 3 and a half years old;
• School Age Payment: for someone with a child old enough to begin to school.