Free school meals eligibility for disadvantaged migrant children made permanent
Fiona Simpson
Thursday, March 24, 2022
Eligibility for free school meals will be permanently extended to cover children from families who are unable to access benefits due to their immigration status, the children’s minister has said.
Children whose families are classed by the Home Office as having “no recourse to public funds (NRPF)” were granted temporary eligibility for free school meals in April 2020 at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
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The law of humanity: Covid-19 and beyond
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Legal update: Immigration status and schools access to funding
NRPF is a status imposed on migrant families who have not yet qualified for permanent residency in the UK. It prevents them from accessing essential welfare support, including universal credit and tax credits.
In a written statement, children’s minister Will Quince has announced that eligibility will be permanently extended to include all children from families with NRPF.
He said the decision had been made following a cross-government review and shared the eligibility thresholds for families which also includes a £16,000 capital savings threshold.
Thresholds are:
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£22,700 per annum for families outside London with one child.
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£31,200 per annum for families within London with one child.
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£26,300 per annum for families outside London with two or more children.
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£34,800 per annum for families within London with two or more children.
Permanent eligibility will start from 19 April and will mean children whose families are classed as having NRPF will also be eligible for pupil premium funding and free home to school transport, Quince said.
Campaigners praised the move with charity Praxis branding the decision "incredible news" on Twitter.
🎉INCREDIBLE NEWS! 🎉
— Praxis 🧡 (@Praxis_Projects) March 24, 2022
The Government has just announced a permanent extension of free school meals to ALL families affected by No Recourse to Public Funds! (1/8) pic.twitter.com/nNKkDI7ToO
Azmina Siddique, policy and impact manager, at The Children’s Society said: “We have been campaigning hard for this and understand what a vital lifeline it has been for many families throughout the pandemic.
“We know from our work at The Children’s Society that low-income families with NRPF, who miss out on benefits like universal credit, often struggle to make ends meet.
“Many of these parents are single mums, who are in low-paid jobs and on zero-hours contracts. They work hard and pay taxes like everyone else, but can’t afford the essentials without a safety net to fall back on. This can harm their children’s health, well-being and life chances.
“With the cost of living crisis looming and families facing impossible choices between basics like heating and eating, this extension will take some pressure off hard-working families.”
However, she warned that “while this announcement is an important step in the right direction, the eligibility threshold for families outside London has dropped by several thousands of pounds.
“We are therefore worried that some families subject to NRPF who have been receiving free school meals could now miss out. We would welcome clarification from the Department for Education about this change to eligibility thresholds and also about whether undocumented families will benefit from these broader changes.”
In August 2020, more than 60 organisations wrote to then Education Secretary Gavin Williamson urging him to make the temporary change permanent.
He added that the Department for Education is set to launch a consultation on the extension of funded childcare places for two-year-olds to all children from NRPF families.
“Since September 2020, some NRPF households have been able to access the two-year-old early education entitlement. However, my department is going to consult as soon as possible on whether there are any additional groups of children from NRPF families who should be eligible for the two-year-old entitlement that we have not already identified.
These changes will help to ensure that every child gets the best possible start and receives the right support, in the right place, at the right time,” he said.