Question to the Department for Education:

To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the findings of the report by Magic Breakfast, Root causes of child morning hunger, published on 9 March, in particular the conclusions on the impact of morning hunger on pupils' readiness to learn, attainment and attendance in secondary schools.

We appreciate publication of the report and will keep up the work with Magic Breakfast and other valued stakeholders as we continue to roll out the free breakfast club programme to all schools with primary-aged pupils across England.

The government is committed to tackling child poverty and delivering meaningful action to support children and families. We recognise the importance of a healthy breakfast at the start of the day for pupils and the impact this can have on attendance and readiness to learn. This is why we are rolling out free breakfast clubs, so that all children, regardless of background, can have the best start in life. Since April 2025, the programme has delivered 8.5 million meals to almost 180,000 pupils across the country. We have also invested a further £80 million to fund approximately 2,000 additional schools between April 2026 and March 2027, with over 500 of those now delivering.

​We have also committed to continued funding of breakfast provision from September 2026 for secondary schools in disadvantaged areas which are currently participating in the National School Breakfast Programme.