All primary school children in London are to get free school meals under a landmark move by London Mayor Sadiq Khan.
The “game-changing” announcement is a major victory for the Mirror’s Free School Meals for All campaign.
Thanks to £130million in emergency funding every primary pupil in the capital will receive a hot, nutritious meal from September this year.
Some 270,000 children will benefit, saving their families an estimated £440 a year.
Mr Khan said: “I know from personal experience that free school meals are a lifeline.
“The difference they can make to children who are at risk of going hungry – and to families who are struggling to make ends meet – is truly game-changing.”
The Mirror is calling for politicians in England to follow Scotland and Wales by providing free school meals for all primary school pupils.
Our Free School Meals For All campaign has been backed by the teaching unions, charities and leading chefs.
Mr Khan said he had decided to step in because the Government had so far refused to help families hit by the spiralling cost of living crisis.
He said: “The cost of living crisis means families and children across our city are in desperate need of additional support. I have repeatedly urged the Government to provide free school meals to help already stretched families, but they have simply failed to act.
“This is why I’m stepping forward with an emergency £130million scheme that will ensure every single primary pupil in the capital receives free school meals.
"This will save families hundreds of pounds over the year, ensuring parents aren’t worrying about how they’re going to feed their children. It will also guarantee every primary school student a healthy, nutritious meal – meaning they don’t go hungry in the classroom and can better concentrate on their studies.”
An estimated 800,000 children in England who are living in poverty miss out on free school meals because of the strict eligibility rules.
To qualify their parents or guardians must earn less than £7,400 a year regardless of the number of children in the household.
Campaigners say universal provision is the only way to ensure every child receives the support they need.
Research has shown that free school meals helps children concentrate and reduces disruption in class.
Barbara Crowther of the Children’s Food Campaign said that every £1 invested in healthy school meals “could deliver £1.71 in increased educational outcomes, better health and longer-term economic benefits”
“Our national Government also needs to step up and make school food for all a permanent part of our education system and the future prosperity of the nation,” she said.
Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, added: “This announcement is a much-needed lifeline for families experiencing hardship following a decade of economic mismanagement from the Government.
“Poverty has a profound impact on students’ attainment and educational outcomes, and the cost-of-living crisis is leading to a devastating fall in living standards for millions, forcing more families into poverty and hardship.
“Children who have access to a healthy, hot meal, every day, are better able to focus, connect with their peers and build bright futures. Making this access universal removes the stigma and ensures all children get the support they need to thrive.”
Victoria Benson, of the single parent charity Gingerbread, said: “The cost of living crisis has been brutal for single parents and has meant that children have gone without basic essentials because household budgets have been stretched beyond breaking point.
“We have heard from so many single parents that they have simply been unable to afford the huge price increases which we have seen over the past year with the result that many of them, or their children, have had to go without food. It will be a huge relief to many parents that their child will now be fed at school and we welcome the Mayor’s free school meals initiative and hope it will mean fewer children in London will experience hunger.”
Oscar-winning actor Dame Emma Thompson also welcomed the move, saying it could not be more timely.
“The fact that it is needed at all is testament to the damaging policies of the last 20 years.
“It is therefore essential that during this year we fight for the right of our children to a proper meal at school, un-stigmatised by the free school meals label which causes so much distress,” she said.
The Bishop of London, Dame Sarah Mullally, said: “London’s children face some of the highest levels of deprivation anywhere in the country. We cannot consider ourselves a modern and progressive society if the most vulnerable among us are forced to go without basic food and nourishment.
"School should be a place where children can learn and grow; not worry about where their next hot meal is going to come from. As Londoners continue to struggle with the cost of living crisis, the prospect of saving hundreds of pounds will be welcome news to the capital’s families.”
Chef Tom Kerridge said: “All children deserve access to healthy, nutritious food and, at a particularly difficult time for many households and families, I’m pleased to lend my support to the Mayor’s initiative to ensure every primary school child in London has access to free school meals.”
The £130million spending will form part of Mr Khan's final budget for the Greater London Authority for the next financial year.
Extra cash is available as revenue from business rates has increased as Central London bounces back following the pandemic.
London Mayor Sadiq Khan writes for the Mirror
Free school meals are a lifeline.
I know because my siblings and I depended on them to eat and my parents relied on them to help make ends meet.
That’s why I’m incredibly proud to announce today that City Hall will be funding free school meals for every primary school pupil in London from September.
I firmly believe that it’s the duty of Government to make sure our children don’t go hungry.
However, given the Tories’ utter failure on this issue – and the extreme pressures facing families with young children right now – we’ve taken matters into our own hands.
Our emergency scheme will help support children and families through this devastating cost of living crisis. It will ensure that for the whole of the next academic year every primary school child, that’s around 270,000 pupils, across the capital can access free school meals, saving parents around £440 per child.
For many of London’s poorest households, this will be a game changer. Parents will no longer have to worry about how they’ll feed their children, while pupils will no longer go hungry in the classroom.
In fact, with a hot, healthy, nutritious meal inside them, they’ll be able to better concentrate on their studies – helping to give them the best possible start in life.
Making free school meals available to all primary school pupils, as we’re doing in London and as the Mirror, the NEU and others have long campaigned for, will also remove any stigma or social embarrassment.
I remember all too painfully the shame I felt having to stand in the separate queue for children on free school meals.
After 13 years in power, it’s a damning indictment on this Tory Government that so many children in our country are still going hungry. But just like Labour in Wales, Labour in London is taking action to ensure no child is left behind.
This is crucial as we strive to build a better, fairer, more prosperous London for everyone.
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