Social Security Scotland’s Best Start Foods card will be promoted at more than 2,200 local convenience stores under a new partnership with the Scottish Grocers Federation Healthy Living Programme.
Best Start Foods, administered by Social Security Scotland, helps pregnant women and eligible families with the cost of buying healthy food and milk for babies and children.
The payment is delivered via a prepaid card and is topped up with up to £39.60 every four weeks.
The initiative will raise awareness of the payment and encourage the 40,000 holders of the prepaid card to use it at their local shop.
Retailers will display information around their store to let customers know they accept the prepaid card as a method of payment.
The Scottish Grocers Federation’s Healthy Living Programme will train and encourage staff in shops to get their customers used to paying with Best Start Foods cards.
Among the chains involved in the new scheme are Spar, Keystore, Nisa, and Premier. The network of small shops promoting Best Start Foods spans the whole of Scotland including the Shetland Isles in the north to the Scottish Borders in the south and from Harris, Stornoway in the west to Peterhead in the east.
Social Security Scotland Chief Executive David Wallace, who launched the scheme, said: “Local convenience shops can sometimes be the lifeblood of their communities. This initiative means owners and staff can offer support to their customers, ensuring they use all of the financial support available to them.
“I would encourage anyone who has a Best Start Foods card to check their balance and to make sure they are using it regularly.
“As well as the smaller local stores the card can be used in most big supermarkets and online.”
Kathryn Neil, Programme Director of the Scottish Grocers’ Federation’s Healthy Living Programme, added: “This positive partnership presents the opportunity for Healthy Living Partnership to join up with other Scottish Government policies.
“Healthy Living Partnership’s relationships with the convenience and wholesale sector allows us to deliver the information to consumers in the most deprived areas of Scotland and reaching those who are eligible.”
Chris Watson, owner of Keystore in Ness Avenue, Johnstone, said: “I’ve been in convenience retail for over 30 years and times are really hard for my customers.
“If I can highlight the Best Start scheme and customers can benefit from it, it can only be a good thing.”
