SHOPPERS in west Wales are being urged to do their bit to help local children and those across the UK.

Tesco is launching it’s new £5m-a-year grant scheme which will support schools and children’s groups, providing funding for food and healthy activities.

The supermarket chain is launching its Stronger Starts scheme with adverts due to hit TV screens from today – Friday, August 18 – and shoppers across west Wales are being asked to vote for one of the projects in the stores by putting the blue token they receive at the check out into the relevant box.

The scheme is replacing the Tesco Community Grants funding programme but will work in the same way.

The grant will help schools and children’s groups provide nutritious food and healthy activities to support young people’s mental wellbeing and physical health. Any groups that could benefit from the grant from Stronger Starts can apply at www.tescoplc.com/strongerstarts.

Claire De Silva, Tesco’s head of communities and local media, said: “We are so excited to be bringing thousands of schools and children’s projects our Stronger Starts grants. Our aim is to inspire children who deserve the opportunity to thrive and give our customers the chance to vote with their blue tokens for their local schools and children’s projects that need extra help.”

The schools and groups can apply for a grant of up to £1,500 through Groundworks – who is supporting the scheme - for activities such as providing fruit for breakfast clubs, snacks to enjoy throughout the day and equipment for outdoor and indoor activities.

The successful applications will be voted for by customers using the blue token scheme in the local Tesco stores. Two of the boxes will be dedicated to local schools and the third will be for local community projects nominated by staff at each store. Customers then choose which they would like to vote for to get the grant with the blue tokens.

Groundwork has found that 78 per cent of schools are providing food for children from their own budget and Tesco’s own research showed that 51 per cent of parents know their child struggles to concentrate at school if they do not have breakfast.