Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of free school breakfasts on school attendance in (1) early years, (2) primary school, and (3) secondary school, settings in England in the past 12 months.

Free breakfast clubs are for schools with primary-aged pupils, so that we make sure we give the youngest pupils the best start in life whilst helping parents with costs of childcare. Free breakfast clubs remove barriers to opportunity by offering primary school children, no matter their circumstance, a supportive start to the school day. School leaders report that free breakfast clubs are improving punctuality, attendance, behaviour and concentration. We have an ongoing free breakfast club programme evaluation which aims to build evidence and insights into impact on attendance for primary-age pupils.