Scotland, Wales, NI
Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods: amounts and application windows
Three one-off payments and a food card from Social Security Scotland for families on low-income benefits.
Checked by Radif Partners · Editorial policy · How we calculate
Best Start Grant is Social Security Scotland’s set of three one-off payments for families on low-income benefits. In 2026/27 the Pregnancy and Baby Payment is £796.65 for a first child and £398.35 for each later child, the Early Learning Payment is £331.95 when a child is between 2 and 3½, and the School Age Payment is £331.95 in the year a child is first old enough for primary school, up from £767.50, £319.80 and £319.80 under the 2026-27 up-rating. A first child can therefore bring £1,460.55 across the three. Alongside it, Best Start Foods loads a prepaid card every four weeks: £22.40 in pregnancy, £44.80 for each baby under one and £22.40 for each child aged one to three. You qualify if you live in Scotland, look after the child and you or your partner get Universal Credit, Housing Benefit, Pension Credit, Income Support, income-based JSA or income-related ESA. Each payment has its own application window, so the dates matter as much as the amounts.
Best Start Grant from pregnancy to school
All three payments
£1,460.55
| Pregnancy and Baby Payment | £796.65 |
| Early Learning Payment (age 2 to 3½) | £331.95 |
| School Age Payment | £331.95 |
Later payments use today’s rates; Social Security Scotland raises them with inflation each April.
The three payments at a glance
| Payment | 2026/27 amount | When to apply |
|---|---|---|
| Pregnancy and Baby Payment | £796.65 first child; £398.35 later children | End of week 24 of pregnancy until the baby is 6 months old |
| Early Learning Payment | £331.95 | From age 2 until 3 years and 6 months |
| School Age Payment | £331.95 | In the year the child is first old enough to start primary school |
The money can be spent on anything: a pram, cot and clothes for the first payment, toys or trips for the second, school shoes and stationery for the third. A child does not have to attend nursery for the Early Learning Payment, or take up a school place for the School Age Payment. The School Age Payment is separate from the council’s School Clothing Grant, and a family can get both.
Pregnancy and Baby Payment: first child, later children, twins
Your first child means your oldest child under 16, including a stepchild or a child you have taken on through adoption or kinship care. If there is none, the payment is £796.65; for the second, third and later children it is £398.35. Unlike the Sure Start grant south of the border, later children are still paid.
| Babies | No other child under 16 | Other children under 16 |
|---|---|---|
| One | £796.65 | £398.35 |
| Twins | £1,593.35 | £1,195.05 |
| Triplets | £1,991.70 | £1,593.40 |
The higher amount can also be paid for a child who is not your first when, for example, you became responsible for your other children after they were 12 months old without giving birth to them, you left home with your children because of domestic abuse, or you are a refugee, resettled or evacuated to the UK and your older children were born before you arrived. mygov.scot lists every case; if yours is not on the form, tick ‘Not sure’. You cannot get this payment if you have already received the Sure Start Maternity Grant for the same baby.
School Age Payment windows
The School Age Payment follows the Scottish school intake, which runs from March to February births. You apply in the window for your child’s birth dates, even if you are deferring the start of school or your child will not attend school at all.
| Child born between | Apply between |
|---|---|
| 1 March 2021 and 28 February 2022 | 1 June 2026 and 28 February 2027 |
| 1 March 2022 and 28 February 2023 | 1 June 2027 and 29 February 2028 |
The window for children born between March 2020 and February 2021 has closed, and late applications for it are not accepted. A child born in October 2021 is in the current window: apply by 28 February 2027, unless Scottish Child Payment already triggers the automatic payment.
Best Start Foods
Best Start Foods is a prepaid card for healthy food such as milk, fruit and vegetables, topped up every four weeks while you are pregnant and until your child turns 3. The weekly rates for 2026/27 are £5.60 during pregnancy, whatever the number of babies, £11.20 for each child under one and £5.60 for each child from one to three, up from £10.80 and £5.40. A baby born early keeps the higher amount until a year after the due date. Families with no recourse to public funds may still get Best Start Foods for the child.
Best Start Foods on your card
Loaded every 4 weeks
£67.20
| A week | £16.80 |
| Over a year | £873.60 |
Paid onto a prepaid card for healthy food such as milk, fruit and vegetables.
A family with a baby of five months and a toddler of two receives £67.20 on the card every four weeks, about £874 a year. You can apply as soon as you know you are pregnant, on the same form as the grant, and the card can be used in shops and online.
Who can get it
You or your partner must live in Scotland, be pregnant or look after a child of the right age as the main carer, and normally get one of these: Universal Credit, Housing Benefit, Income Support, Pension Credit, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance or income-related Employment and Support Allowance. Housing Benefit is on the list, which is not the case for Scottish Child Payment. Child Benefit alone does not qualify. If you have applied for one of these benefits and are waiting, you can apply now.
Young parents have their own route. Under 18, no benefit is needed at all. At 18 or 19, you can still qualify if your parent or carer gets Child Benefit, Universal Credit child payments or the child addition in Pension Credit for you; that application has to be made by phone or on paper. The main carer can be a parent, grandparent, legal guardian or kinship carer, shown by the child being named on a Child Benefit, Universal Credit or Pension Credit claim, or by a legal order.
Applying
One form covers all three grant payments, Best Start Foods and Scottish Child Payment, and you receive a separate decision letter for each. Apply online in 10 to 20 minutes, by phone on 0800 182 2222 or by post; you need your National Insurance number if you have one, your bank details, your partner’s name and date of birth, and details of the children you look after. Do not send a second application for the same child while the first is pending, as that slows the decision. Families moving to Scotland from elsewhere in the UK should compare with the guide to benefits in Scotland, and remember that a pregnant woman who stops work may also be due Maternity Allowance.