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Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods

Best Start Grant has replaced the Sure Start Maternity Grant in Scotland.

Best Start Grant is 3 cash payments that you can apply for if you're a parent or a carer.

You can get Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods:

  • if your child is the right age for a payment
  • whether you're in work or not, as long as you're on certain payments or benefits
  • as long as you're the parent of a child, or the main person looking after the child

Best Start Grant

Best Start Grant includes 3 one-off cash payments:

  1. Pregnancy and Baby Payment 
  2. Early Learning Payment
  3. School Age Payment

The Best Start Foods card

Best Start Foods is a prepaid card that you can use to buy healthy foods for children under 3. You can use the card in shops and online.

Apply

Apply online on the mygov.scot website.