Free school meals for all infant pupils gets backing from charities

The £600m scheme, due to be announced today by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg at the Liberal Democrat annual conference, will see all children in reception and years 1 and 2 offered a hot lunch from September 2014.

Clegg will also pledge during his Glasgow conference speech to extend the offer to all primary school pupils if the party is re-elected in 2015.

Hilary Emery, chief executive of the National Children’s Bureau, said it was an encouraging sign that politicians have recognised the clear link between a good diet, children’s health and their performance in education.

“Giving every infant school pupil the right to a free school meal will provide a level playing field for all pupils and encourage them to adopt healthy eating habits later on in life,” she said.

“Research shows that children who enjoy a nutritious meal at school are more likely to be alert and attentive in class and behave better towards their classmates.”

Anne Longfield, chief executive at charity 4Children, said the move would help ease pressure on stretched family budgets and take away the stigma some families feel with accepting state support.

“Helping in this way should provide some welcome relief to the finances of those families with young children who we know have been hit hard by the economic downturn.

“Providing free school dinners for all should also get over the stigmatisation that prevented hundreds of thousands of eligible families claiming in the past – a particular problem in some of the poorest, inner city areas of England,” she added.

As part of the plan, the offer of a free school meal will also be extended to disadvantaged students aged 16 to 18 in further education and sixth form colleges. The offer is currently only available to students in school sixth forms.

Martin Doel, chief executive of the Association of Colleges, said the move would benefit 103,000 students from poorer backgrounds who have been disadvantaged by studying in non-school-based settings. 

He said: “This is great news and something we have been working towards for some years through our No Free Lunch? campaign.

“It marks the end of a fundamental funding anomaly that saw students penalised based on their choice of academic institution, and is a clear sign that the government is serious about creating a level playing field between colleges, sixth form colleges and schools.”

The scheme, funding details of which are due to be announced in the Chancellor’s Autumn Budget Statement, is expected to save parents around £400 a year for each child that qualifies.