Healthy start vouchers, More a wwyd?

[alowVeraWithPurpleTwuntyPants]

Was in Tescos earlier, and after shopping went to till, man in front of me was using healthy start vouchers to pay for his shopping, tried to pay with 4, but didn't have enough fruit/veg/milk to use them all, about 40pence off, so not much, and till worker pointed to the sweets, he picked a mars bar, and till work put through the vouchers. (cannot comment on the exact contents of his trolley as a) I am not that nosy, although b) he only paid 18p in the end and used 4 vouchers I am that nosy )
Correct me if I am wrong, but since when was a mars bar covered by a healthy start voucher?

When we had these vouchers we made sure that we had enough milk/fruit/veg to use the voucher. If we didn't we either grabbed a single banana or didn't use all the vouchers.

So. WWYO

1. ignore it. Aka mind my own business.
2. make the store aware of it.
3. inform the "healthy start" people.

Agree he was probably trying to make up the shortfall. I expect if they get short of milk and he gets a pint from the corner shop he doesn't pay the 50p with a £3.10 voucher, so it evens out. I find it annoying that the independent grocers' near me don't take them, because I prefer to buy fresh stuff there. (It's cheaper and nicer) So I go to iceland, buy one of their £1 4 pint jugs of milk and make up the other £2.10 with whatever else we need. To be fair frozen veg is covered now which makes it easier, but Iceland don't tend to be fussy as long as you've bought one item which is covered.

The health in pregnancy grant wasn't to buy healthy stuff with BTW. It was a bribe financial incentive to encourage pregnant women to see a midwife.

glad someone else doesn't know ruby

Healthy Start Vouchers

Ah OP it's only a Mars bar, poor man!

I get these vouchers, and as I have a baby and a toddler and I bf, so I don't need to buy formula with them, I have rather a lot of voucher money to spend on milk and fresh fruit and veg! Especially as we are veggies, it's fantastic! A real life saver, and the money I save on shopping goes towards buying oil to heat the house or savings for the girls, so I feel I am as responsible as I can be with my benefits.

Mostly my local Tesco accept my vouchers and don't check my shopping. I always have 4 litres of milk and loads of fresh fruit and veg in my weekly shop anyway, so I suppose they reckon I have spent enough to cover the vouchers. One staff member did count up what I'd spent and was really apologetic about it, even though of course I didn't mind, as she said someone had let a woman buy a bottle of vodka with some!

Sheepling, your local supermarket sounds horrible! Can't you shop somewhere else?

I use these and they're great, but in my extreme stupidity niaivity I assumed that the till automatically checked the amount I'd spent on fruit/veg/milk and deducted the money once I'd gone above that amount.

I really am so niaive aren't I?!

Healthy Start Vouchers are vouchers that families on low income with very young children (Under 5s, I think) can use to buy milk, vegetables, and fruit at stores that take them (it can also be used for formula if a child is under 1). They are for a set amount (£3.10 per voucher). No change is given for them so the person in the OP has to have enough to make up the total vouchers he used -- so if you have £3 of stuff, you need to grab something else to make up the 10p or you can't use the voucher.

Originally these were 'milk tokens' for formula and milk to help those on the lowest incomes and benefits give their children enough calories and prevent over-watering formula. Now, it's more designed to help the same group eat/living healthier, they come with little booklets of recipes/healthy living information.

Thank you kanga

Our local ASDA are buggers about taking these.

I get tokens for DD, who is 3, and eighteen month old DS3. I tend to do a huge shop every fortnight, which includes lots of milk and fresh and frozen veg. And no matter how much of that i buy they will only take milk tokens to the value of 10% of my shopping.

Apparently it's policy

I'm pregnant with DC5 now and am due to get milk tokens for myself in a couple of weeks. I'll be shopping elsewhere then.

it was 3.80 when i got them!

Fucking Hell! Ring the Police, immediately!

£3.10 per voucher, but you get 4 vouchers a month. If your child is under one then you get 8 vouchers a month, I think?

You get a voucher a week per child under four, but two vouchers a week for those one and under. You also get one a week from your twelfth week of pregnancy.

dee I would contact ASDA head office. That policy was introduced when they started to accept any money off coupons for any product or store. Healthy Start vouchers are in a different class, and I suspect if you let the Healthy Start people know too, that store manager would get an enormous bollocking.

Report NOW

Mars bar fraud is bleeding the country dry.

No Way!How come I didn't know about these vouchers?? Ds is not five yet and we are certainly on a low income. Where do you have to apply for them?

Oh never mind, you cant get em if you get working tax credit, and its only under fours. Sorry for butting in. Resume judging

on-line application form here

Ah, x-post northernrock

Leo I also assumed the till totted them up
I don't get them anymore but I was never questioned at the till. Good job or I would have been a bit catsbummouth about it quite frankly

Please don't complain about it- enough shops are really arsey about taking them (including Tescos, where they wouldn't let me buy £3.07 of fruit and milk on them so I had to go back and get a single grape to make it up to the full amount, ffs), and it'll only make things harder for people who are using them properly (as most people do). I'm amazed the cashier let him do it but if they crack down on it then the shop might end up stopping taking the vouchers (they don't have to accept them) and some single mum with no transport will end up with nowhere to get fruit and veg for her kids.

I used to have them before I went back started work. We used to put all the fruit, veg milk on first and get the cashier to subtotal it. Like you wibbly I've had to go back for a banana or a couple of grapes.

Our Corner shop takes them on tick for milk. Takes the token, Writes your name in a book, and you pop in for a pint every day or so, and the check it off, until you've "used" the token.

I've just never experienced a lax checkout operator.

Must say though the health start vouchers are better than the milk tokens. They used to be a nightmare if you were bf and didn't drink milk. I personally think the healthy start vouchers are brilliant.

I would be surprised if the mars bar did actualy make the total so he could use them. I have had them when dd was a toddler and used them in asda and morrissons, so dont know for sure about tescos, but with both asda and morrisons the shopping goes through the till the vouchers are scanned and the till automatically knows what is and isnt included and deducts the specific items within the scheeme. so seems odd a mars bar was accepted.

I am amazed you took such an interest in someone else's shopping, and even more amazed you think it is your business to do something about it!

Just called stratford-upon-avon Tesco and they are happy for the delivery driver to collect our healthy start vouchers upon delivery to take back to office and will issue a refund each time !!!! BEST NEWS!;-)