SUMMER MEAL SITES
Summer meals sites provide free meals and snacks to kids and teens age 18 and under, thanks to federal funding local organizations, and Philadelphians who organize sites in their community. There are no income requirements, ID, or registration needed for youth to access meals in qualifying areas.
find a summer meals site
This summer, free and healthy meals for Philadelphia children and teens are just around the corner.
No child should go hungry in summer when school meals aren't an option. This summer, local organizations and neighbors across Philadelphia are offering free, healthy summer meals at sites across the city for children up to 18 years old.
Find out what meals are being offered near you. Check this map to find summer meals for children in your neighborhood.
See a full-screen version of this map HERE
Start a summer meals site
Nearly 1 in 8 children in Philadelphia experience food insecurity. And when schools are closed, many students lose access to nutritious school meals.
It's easy to serve free meals to children under 18 this summer. You can host a summer meal site for children on your block, in your community, or at your organization.
The following Philadelphia site sponsors can work with you to bring summer meals to your neighborhood or summer program:
Philadelphia Parks & Recreation: 215-685-2725
- Runs the Playstreets Program, which allows city blocks to close to traffic to provide meals and activities during the summer.
- Playstreets requirements;
- No numbered streets, bus routes, or major thoroughfares
- Must be a residential block with no businesses
- Playstreets requirements;
Nutritional Development Services (NDS): 215-895-3470, option 1
- Works with a wide variety of summer programs, organizations, and outdoor neighborhood meal sites
- Review the NDS list of Frequently Asked Questions HERE
watch the webinar:
To learn more about what to expect and how to become a summer meal site, watch this webinar hosted by The Philadelphia Department of Public Health. Presenters include representatives from Nutritional Development Services, Philadelphia Parks & Recreation, and The Coalition Against Hunger. Please make sure to skip ahead to 16:40 in the recording. This will help you avoid our pre-webinar troubleshooting. Click HERE to watch the Webinar!
Alyssa Bradley, Advocacy and Communications Associate for The Coalition Against Hunger, was invited to write a guest article on the importance of the Summer Meals Program. You can find and read the article HERE.
