In recent years, rising costs have taught us we have a critical need in the UK for mechanisms that distribute funds effectively to those in need. That need is likely to remain for some time. Although interest rates are expected to fall over the next year, the cost of living is still eye-wateringly high. Many people will likely require continued support through public social programmes.

At Edenred we are proud to play a key role in this space – in fact, over the last five years, we have been the largest provider of cost of living government support with over £1bn distributed to those who need it most.

Here’s a breakdown of our solutions that help facilitate the distribution of those funds. And how they can offer a vital lifeline in the event of crisis and hardship.

Our solutions for distribution of support payments

At Edenred we have an unparalleled experience of providing secure, fast, and efficient ways to disburse funds and financial support through eGift cards, eVouchers and prepaid cards to a range of beneficiaries.

Our solutions include Government voucher schemes framework (RM6248). As a supplier on this Crown Commercial Service Government framework, we provide Select eCodes that offer flexible ordering, distribution and eGift card and gift card options, plus grocery and non-grocery catalogues to suit the needs of target recipients and help them with the cost of living

Other solutions we offer include Select Energy vouchers that residents can use to top up prepaid energy meters. We’ve also recently created Select home to school, our programme in partnership with Halfords that helps local authorities deliver funding to families to help children travel to school for free by bike - making travel to school both more affordable and sustainable amid rising schooling costs.

Impact

All these examples are based on our Select platform – and the impact has been far reaching and often in response to urgent needs and directives.

During lockdown for instance, we deployed Select to ensure the 1.3 million children who receive free school meals in England wouldn’t go hungry while schools were closed. This was a direct response to a request from the Department for Education to design a scheme which would provide parents and carers with weekly vouchers that could be put towards the cost of feeding children at home.

Our home to school scheme is designed specifically to help local authorities meet their obligations under Department for Education guidance, which aims to ensure that no child of compulsory school age is prevented from accessing education by a lack of or cost of transport.

Sometimes the need is triggered by unexpected events, which we’re always responsive to. When Russia invaded Ukraine, we deployed select to help East Renfrewshire Council welcome refugees that required urgent care, food and essential items such as toilet and hygiene products – helping to make sure the people in need got the support they required rapidly and securely.

How our support payment schemes work

As well as these headline benefits for people who need support, Edenred’s support payment schemes also offer a range of benefits for organisations – ensuring that schemes run smoothly and efficiently in line with target objectives:

• Flexible distribution – send vouchers in a way that suits your organisation, whether that’s via email, physical vouchers, downloading stack eCodes or bespoke options if required.
• Control over spend – ensure funds are spent correctly by using codes which can be swapped for merchant eGift cards or gift cards.
• Control and visibility – order or send eCodes and also track and manage orders with our easy-to-use portal.
• Fast deployment – get up-and-running within 1–10 days (depending on the scheme) with support from our dedicated onboarding team.
• Simple for recipients – deliver a simple and flexible process for beneficiaries who can redeem vouchers and choose retailers that suit their needs from our extensive retail partner network.
• Value for money – use our platform to see the status of every voucher, their expiry dates and ensure that any unused or expired. eCodes are fully refunded, free of charge to reinvest.

“Over the past 20 years we have a proven track record of helping government departments, councils, schools and other public sector organisations by tailoring our services to unique scheme objectives and circumstances,” says Colin Hodgson, Commercial Director, Public Sector for Reward Gateway. “Whatever the requirement, or whatever particular circumstances they must respond to, we encourage all relevant organisations to get in touch to find out how we can deliver a quick, simple and effective solution that delivers targeted financial support for those most in need.”