If you are pregnant or have young children and you are on a low income, the Healthy Start scheme can help you buy healthy food and milk, and get free vitamins. It comes as a prepaid card topped up automatically, yet around a third of eligible families miss out. This guide explains what Healthy Start is worth in 2026, who can get it, and how to apply.

What Healthy Start is

Healthy Start is a scheme that helps pregnant women and families with young children on a low income to buy healthy food. You receive a prepaid card that is topped up every four weeks, which you can use in most shops to buy fruit, vegetables, pulses, milk and infant formula. You also qualify for free Healthy Start vitamins. It is designed as a nutritional safety net during pregnancy and the early years, when good food matters most.

How much you get

From April 2026, Healthy Start is worth £4.65 a week for each eligible person, which covers a pregnant woman from the tenth week of pregnancy, and each child aged between one and four. For each child under one year old, the amount is higher, at £9.30 a week, reflecting the cost of milk and formula for babies. The money builds up on your card every four weeks for you to spend on eligible items.

Who can claim

You can usually claim Healthy Start if you are at least ten weeks pregnant or have a child under four, and you receive a qualifying benefit. If you are on Universal Credit, you generally qualify if your household's earned income from work is no more than a set monthly amount. If you are under 18 and pregnant, you can claim even if you are not on any benefits. The scheme runs in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

The free vitamins

As well as the card, Healthy Start gives you access to free vitamins, which are important during pregnancy and early childhood. These include vitamins for pregnant and breastfeeding women, and vitamin drops suitable for young children. These vitamins can be hard to afford otherwise, so it is worth making sure you collect them, as they support healthy development at a crucial time. Ask your midwife or health visitor where to get them locally.

How to apply

You apply for Healthy Start online through the NHS Healthy Start website, or by phone if you need help. The application is straightforward, and once approved you will be sent your prepaid card, which is then topped up automatically every four weeks for as long as you remain eligible. Your midwife or health visitor can help you apply, and can explain how the card works if you are unsure.

Why so many miss out

Despite being valuable and simple to use, Healthy Start is widely under-claimed, with around a third of eligible families not getting it. Reasons include not knowing the scheme exists, uncertainty about eligibility, and worry about applying. Because the support is genuinely useful and the application is easy, it is well worth checking whether you qualify and applying if you do, as there is real money for healthy food going unclaimed.

If you live in Scotland

In Scotland, the equivalent scheme is called Best Start Foods, run by Social Security Scotland, which works in a similar way with a prepaid card but is more generous and covers children up to the age of three. Scotland also has the Best Start Grant payments for families. If you live in Scotland, look at Best Start Foods and the Best Start Grant rather than Healthy Start, as together they offer broader support.

What you can buy

The Healthy Start card can be used to buy a defined range of healthy items: plain fruit and vegetables, whether fresh, frozen or tinned, plain dried or tinned pulses, plain cow's milk, and infant formula based on cow's milk. It is designed to encourage healthy eating during pregnancy and early childhood. Knowing exactly what is covered helps you make the most of the card and avoids confusion at the checkout about which items it will pay for.

Using the card

The card works like a contactless bank card and can be used in any shop that accepts Mastercard and sells the eligible items, including most supermarkets. The balance is topped up automatically every four weeks while you remain eligible, and you can check your balance online or by phone. If you have any trouble using the card, the Healthy Start helpline can assist, so do not give up if you hit a problem at first.

Keep your details current

To keep receiving Healthy Start, you need to keep your details up to date and respond to any checks on your eligibility, for example as your income or circumstances change or as your child gets older. If your youngest child turns four, or your income rises above the threshold, your eligibility may end. Keeping your information current makes sure you receive what you are entitled to for as long as you qualify.

Why it is worth claiming

For a family on a tight budget, the Healthy Start card is real money set aside for healthy food and milk, which can be among the first things to be squeezed when money is short. Over the early years of a child's life, the payments add up, and the free vitamins are an added benefit that supports healthy development. Given how easy it is to apply, it is well worth claiming rather than leaving this support unused.

Ask your midwife or health visitor

If you are unsure about anything to do with Healthy Start, your midwife or health visitor is a good first port of call, as they deal with the scheme regularly and can help you apply, explain how the card works, and tell you where to collect your free vitamins. They can also help you check what other support you might be entitled to as a new or expectant parent, so it is worth asking.

In short

Healthy Start gives you a prepaid card worth £4.65 a week during pregnancy and for each child aged one to four, and £9.30 a week for each child under one, from April 2026, plus free vitamins. You can claim if you are pregnant or have a child under four and are on a qualifying benefit. Apply through the NHS Healthy Start website, and do not miss out.

A simple, valuable safety net

Healthy Start is one of the simplest forms of help to claim and use, yet it provides a genuine nutritional safety net for pregnant women and young children on a low income. With a third of eligible families missing out, the main barrier is simply awareness. If you are expecting a baby or have a child under four and are on a low income, take a few minutes to check whether you qualify and apply, because this is genuinely useful support worth having for your family.

Where to get help

Your midwife, health visitor and Citizens Advice can help you apply for Healthy Start. See our guides to the Sure Start Maternity Grant and Child Benefit for more help with the cost of a child.