Children are so hungry that they are eating rubbers or hiding in the playground because they can’t afford lunch, according to reports from headteachers across England.
The headteachers say the government is leaving schools to deal with a mounting crisis – a message amplified by a new survey on food poverty in schools, due to be published next month by Chefs in Schools, a healthy eating charity which trains chefs for school kitchens. It reveals that many schools in England are already seeing a “heartbreaking” increase in hungry children, even before winter and big energy bills force more families to choose between switching on the heating and buying food.
