Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether his Department has plans to (a) measure pupil uptake of free school breakfasts in each school as part of the National School Breakfast Programme and (b) publish the average pupil uptake across all schools involved in that programme.
Answered by Will Quince
The government is committed to continuing support for school breakfast clubs and the department is investing up to £24 million to continue our national programme until the end of the summer term in 2023. This funding will support around 2,500 schools in disadvantaged areas meaning that thousands of children from low-income families will be offered free nutritious breakfasts to better support their attainment, wellbeing, and readiness to learn. The focus of the programme is to target the most disadvantaged areas of the country, including the department’s opportunity areas.
The enrolment process for schools joining the programme is currently ongoing, and the department has seen a strong interest so far from eligible schools since we invited the expressions of interest.
Throughout the current contract the department will be working with our provider, Family Action, to monitor different aspects of the current programme, including data on pupil uptake. The department will consider the best opportunities to share information on the programme as it progresses.
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with relevant stakeholders on the level of pupil uptake of free school breakfasts in schools receiving support from the National School Breakfast Programme from September to December 2021.
Answered by Will Quince
The government is committed to continuing support for school breakfast clubs and the department is investing up to £24 million to continue our national programme until the end of the summer term in 2023. This funding will support around 2,500 schools in disadvantaged areas meaning that thousands of children from low-income families will be offered free nutritious breakfasts to better support their attainment, wellbeing, and readiness to learn. The focus of the programme is to target the most disadvantaged areas of the country, including the department’s opportunity areas.
The enrolment process for schools joining the programme is currently ongoing, and the department has seen a strong interest so far from eligible schools since we invited the expressions of interest.
Throughout the current contract the department will be working with our provider, Family Action, to monitor different aspects of the current programme, including data on pupil uptake. The department will consider the best opportunities to share information on the programme as it progresses.
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, which schools in Mitcham and Morden constituency will be supported by the new National School Breakfast Programme tender during the academic year 2021-2022.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The government is committed to continuing support for school breakfast clubs and we are investing up to £24 million to continue our national programme for the next two years. This funding will support around 2,500 schools in disadvantaged areas meaning that thousands of children from low-income families will be offered free nutritious breakfasts to better support their attainment, wellbeing and readiness to learn.
The focus of the programme is to target the most disadvantaged areas of the country, including the Department for Education’s Opportunity Areas. Schools’ eligibility for the programme is based on the Income deprivation affecting children index (IDACI) – a nationally recognised indicator of need – to ensure provision is directed where it is most needed. Schools will be eligible for the programme if they have 50% or more pupils within bands A-F of the IDACI scale.
The enrolment process for schools joining the programme is currently ongoing, and we have seen a strong interest so far from eligible schools since we invited the expressions of interest. Schools are currently still able to apply to join the programme. As we are still registering schools for the programme, it is too early to publish a list of participating schools. However, we will consider the best opportunities to share information on the programme as it progresses.
Asked by: Siobhain McDonagh (Labour - Mitcham and Morden)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans his Department has to clarify (a) which schools are participating in the National School Breakfast Programme and (b) whether the purpose of that programme is to alleviate classroom hunger.
Answered by Vicky Ford
The government is committed to continuing support for breakfast clubs and we are funding up to a further £24 million to continue our programme over the next two years. This funding will support around 2,500 schools in disadvantaged areas meaning that thousands of children in low income families will be offered nutritious breakfasts.
The focus of the programme is to target the most disadvantaged areas of the country, including the Department for Education’s Opportunity Areas. Schools will be eligible for the programme if they have 50% or more pupils within bands A-F of the Income deprivation affecting children index (IDACI) scale. When schools join the programme, they will sign a partnership agreement that requires them to identify and target those children that are most in need of support. Our provider, Family Action, will monitor attendance data at each participating school, and will support those schools with their targeting where needed. This will ensure that the programme benefits the children who are most in need of support.
The enrolment process for schools joining the programme is currently ongoing, and we have seen a strong interest so far from eligible schools since we invited the expressions of interest. Schools are currently still able to apply to join the programme. As we are still registering schools for the programme, it is too early to publish a list of participating schools. However, we will consider the best opportunities to share information on the programme as it progresses.