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There has been an increase in the number of UK children signing up for free school meals, with an estimated 1 million pupils recently signing up for the first time, according to anti-food poverty activists.
The Food Foundation think tank analysis, released as part of soccer player Marcus Rashford’s campaign to end child food poverty, estimates that up to 900,000 more children have sought free school meals, in addition to the 1.4 million who They were already claiming, like Covid-19 The crisis wreaks havoc on family income.
Activists urged ministers to prevent a growing food insecurity crisis for millions of children by expanding eligibility for free lunches to all children up to the age of 16 whose families were claiming universal credit or other benefits.
Manchester United and England footballer Rashford, who this weekend was awarded an MBE for services to vulnerable children, said: “The numbers recorded here simply reinforce the urgent need to stabilize households … we must act now to protect the next generation and the most vulnerable across the UK. “
LGA Labor’s analysis reveals that more than 450,000 students face medium-term expenses under tighter lockdown restrictions, but without free school meals. Most of those children are concentrated in the North of England and the Midlands.
“Across the country, millions have lost their jobs or been laid off, businesses are sinking and everyone is finding things difficult: eight out of 10 families are feeling worse because of the pandemic. The economy is in dire straits and the new restrictions will make it even more difficult to make ends meet, ”said LGA Labor Deputy Director Council Member Michael Payne.
Rashford urged the government to extend its holiday meal voucher scheme to £ 15 a week for children with free school meals for half the term. The period coincides with the end of the current job retention scheme, which raises the prospect of a new wave of unemployment.
In June, Rashford forced a government U-turn on providing food stamps to low-income families during the summer holidays after he published an open letter asking Boris Johnson to revoke plans to abandon the plan. , a claim initially rejected by the number 10..
The Food Foundation’s analysis showed that even when they were eligible for free school meals, many children were missing a hot lunch, the key meal of the day for poor children. This was because the Covid-19 measures meant that some school cafeterias were not yet fully operational.
Out of more than 1,000 UK school-age children surveyed by the foundation in September, only 45% said their cafeterias were operating as usual and 8% reported that their cafeterias were closed. One in 10 said that the majority of students had been asked to bring a packed lunch, while 21% said that the canteens only served a small number of students.
The deepening impact of the economic crisis was illustrated by a large increase in enrollment of families who did not normally claim free school meals, typically where the top earners had been in relatively high-paid supervisory and administrative roles, he added. the foundation.
Several local authorities and schools contacted by The Guardian confirmed that there had been an increase in registrations for free school meals. Sarah Hewitt-Clarkson, principal of Anderton Park Elementary in Birmingham, said the proportion of her students who say they have free school lunches has risen from 35% to 47% in September.
He said some struggling families were unable to claim free school meals because they were not eligible for social security benefits. Others had suffered large cuts in family income but still would not meet the threshold for school lunch support. “School meals cost £ 45 a month for a child. It’s a lot of money, “he added.
Eligibility for free school meals is restricted to children in households where parents claim benefits for lack of work, including some with universal credit. The latest official figures showed that 1.4 million children in England were consuming free school meals in 2018-19.
The Blackpool council said there had been a 21% increase in enrollment for free school meals since March. The Suffolk County Council has reported a 15% increase over the same period. The Hammersmith and Fulham council in London, which has been testing universal free lunches at two of its high schools, also reported an increase.
The Department of Education said it was anticipating an increase in enrollment for free school meals. The next set of official figures is not released until December. A government spokesman said: “We have taken substantial steps to ensure that children and their families do not go hungry during this pandemic.”
This included extending support for free school meals to those eligible when schools were partially closed during closure, temporarily increasing universal credit by £ 20 per week, funding councils to provide emergency food assistance to families, and allocating £ 63 millions to councils for families in distress.
Expanding access to free school meals was a key recommendation in the government-commissioned National Food Plan published in July. He said that 1.5 million more children aged 7 to 16 in England in households claiming universal credit should receive free school lunches, at a cost of £ 670 million a year.
