Labour will only win the next election if we can show people that we’re on their side. And what better policy to do this than universal free school meals, which both help hard-pressed families and improve children’s health and learning.
The Labour party in Islington, Newham and County Durham have just introduced free school meals for all – the latter two partly funded by the Government. The results so far show that almost all children are now eating healthy school meals, instead of unhealthy (and expensive) packed lunches or, worse, just some snacks eaten on the way to school.
This not only helps in the battle against childhood obesity, teachers also report that well-fed children learn better and behave better too.
But don’t all children who can’t currently afford a school meal get one for free already? Scandalously, no. The income qualification for free meals is so low that many families under the official poverty line still do not qualify.
Asking families like this to pay for school meals, which cost around £300-a-year per child, is one of the most invidious elements of the poverty trap. Simply the cost of school meals is one of the main reasons it doesn’t pay for some parents to return to work. Breaking the poverty trap is vital to getting more people into work, quickening the pace of economic recovery.
Finally, many children who are eligible for free school meals currently do not claim them, because of the perceived stigma. Some schools even ask children claiming a free school meals to use a different queue. The pilots of universal free school meals show that almost all of the families who would be eligible for free school meals now do claim them as the system no longer singles them out.
Richard Watts is a Labour councillor in Islington
To reach hundreds of thousands of new readers and to make the biggest impact we can in the next general election, we need to grow our donor base substantially.
That's why in 2024, we are seeking to generate 150 additional regular donors to support Left Foot Forward's work.
We still need another 124 people to donate to hit the target. You can help. Donate today.
16 Responses to “Free school meals for all”
David
This really gets my goat. Yes free school meals are a good idea as a way of helping introduce children to healthy eating as a good chunk of the parents out there today seem incapable of proper cooking. I heard one mother (stay at home) claiming she could not survive without ready meals. Now am sorry that is just sad.
Anyway back to the point. What annoys me is this whole idea of not claiming because of the stigma. I am sorry but if you need it you need it. Beggars can’t be choosers and all that. Get off you high horse and accept some help you idiot or is your ‘image’ worth more to you that your health.
As for school trips my school drives me mad. They have regular charity drives, lots of pressure to give money to all worthy causes. But then they are asking money for every single trip they go on and last year they did not get a trip because of no funds. I am sorry but a school is for learning and should sort the education of the children (including trips) before it dabbles with trying to heal the world through charitable donations.
Progressive manifesto ideas – have your say | Left Foot Forward
[…] Richard Watts suggests emulating the Labour party in Islington, Newham and County Durham and introducing free school meals for all. He says, “the results so far show that almost all children are now eating healthy school meals, instead of unhealthy (and expensive) packed lunches or, worse, just some snacks eaten on the way to school.” […]
Kay Tie
It’s so sad. Of course Labour isn’t on the side of ordinary people: it never has been. It exists to perpetuate itself, and thus it supports a particular power bloc, that of the leadership of large trade unions. Given that union leaders receive more than the £200,000 social responsibility levy (proposed elsewhere here) is it any wonder that there is a massive disconnect between what Labour says and what Labour does?
Rather than propose a sequence of ridiculous schemes like this (or “eye-catching initiatives in the NewSpeak of New Labour) why not have some real reform: put people in charge of their own lives and give them the resources to do so. In other words, let parents take control of their own schools. The school can sort out the meals policy as a mere detail along with all the other issues it faces. Having a minister like Ed Balls (or a Labour councillor in Islington) tell pupils what to eat on a Wednesday is palpable nonsense. Having parents decide how the school is run – without Ed Balls or Richard Watts having the tiniest say – is truly empowering.
The Friendly Lefty
Kay Tie, that’s rubbish. Give parents the choice between some vague ‘say’ in how the school is run (what are teachers and school admin staff for?) or reduce the burden on their family budget and improve their children’s diets in one go, and they will pick the latter every time.
Two children in every classroom go hungry | Left Foot Forward
[…] Free school meals for all? 27 oct […]