Question: A poor man does not pray; he has young, frail children and a wife. Is it permissible to disburse zakat to this man?
Answer: Zakat should be given to this man’s children and his wife if they are in need; the zakat-payer should place it in the mother’s hand to spend on her children if she is trustworthy, or in the father’s hand if he is trustworthy. There is no harm in his eating with his children from the zakat that is in their hands.
Source : Min Thimār al-ʿIlm wa al-Ḥikmah vol.1