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The Healthy Start Vouchers study

27 September 2010

Boy eating corn on the cob
A new 18-month research project will examine the experiences of families using the government's Healthy Start vouchers.  The Government’s Healthy Start scheme enables families living on low incomes to receive free vouchers every week which they can swap for milk, fresh fruit, fresh vegetables and infant formula milk. Families on the scheme are also entitled to free vitamins.  The research has been commissioned by the Department of Health to help them better understand how the scheme is working and to highlight any areas where improvements may be possible.  Researchers will interview women, health professionals, and retailers across England about the scheme.

The project is led by Dr Patricia Lucas from the Centre for Research in Health and Social Care at the School for Policy Studies.  Dr Lucas will be working with Ailsa Cameron, Head of the Centre for Research in Health and Social Care, Meg Wiggins from the Institute of Education London, and Katherine Tyler from City University London to complete this work.  The project is due to complete in May 2012.