Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what consideration her Department has given to including milk in government-funded breakfast clubs without reducing funding for existing milk provision schemes.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The department funds schools taking part in the free breakfast clubs programme to buy breakfast foods and drinks, as well as to cover staffing and delivery costs.
Schools are required to provide a breakfast adhering to the school food standards, which could include a glass of lower fat milk. However, it is up to schools to decide what they serve in line with the standards. Where schools provide milk, they can also choose whether to participate in the national school milk subsidy scheme which can be used to reduce the cost of the milk
Additionally, the Nursery Milk Scheme is operated and funded by the Department of Health and Social Care and provides free milk to children under five at participating schools and childcare settings.
Asked by: Marie Goldman (Liberal Democrat - Chelmsford)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of extending ring-fenced support for (a) nutritious meals and (b) food education to all early years settings.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and tackling child poverty. Our landmark Child Poverty Strategy tackles the root causes of poverty by cutting the cost of essentials, boosting family incomes and improving local services so that every child can have the best start in life.
Removing the two-child limit will lift 450,000 children out of poverty, rising to around 550,000 alongside other measures, such as expanding free school meals to all children in households receiving Universal Credit from September 2026.
This will deliver the largest expected reduction in child poverty over a Parliament since comparable records began and will also apply to children in school-based nurseries and maintained nursery schools.
Under the early years foundation stage (EYFS) statutory framework, any meals, snacks and drinks provided must be healthy, balanced and nutritious. The department has published new EYFS nutrition guidance, and the ‘Help for early years providers’ website offers resources on food activities and sensory food education. The EYFS guidance is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/6839b752210698b3364e86fc/Early_years_foundation_stage_nutrition_guidance.pdf.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what information her Department holds on the proportion of food served in state schools in England that is sourced from British (a) farms and (b) other food producers.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
Schools are responsible for their school meals service and how and where they choose to buy their produce. We encourage schools to provide a wide range of foods using fresh, sustainable locally sourced, seasonal ingredients including produce from the school vegetable garden where possible.
Alongside this, we encourage schools to follow the Government Buying Standard for food and catering, which includes advice around procurement and sustainable sourcing of produce.
We aim to revise the School Food Standards and are engaging with stakeholders to ensure they support our work to create the healthiest generation of children in history and will be consulting publicly in due course. As part of this work, we will review our guidance on sourcing good quality produce.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to encourage healthy eating habits in young people, separate from Out of Home Calorie Labelling Regulations.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government’s advice on a healthy, balanced diet is encapsulated in the United Kingdom’s national food model, the Eatwell Guide. The Eatwell Guide applies to most people from the age of two years old, and is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-eatwell-guide#
The Eatwell Guide’s principles are communicated through a variety of channels, including the NHS.UK website and Department social marketing campaigns, which encompass Better Health, Better Health Families, and Best Start in Life. This includes a series of websites and digital tools that support families with young children to eat better, providing guidance on healthy eating, such as the Food Scanner app and email programmes.
Education around healthy eating is also covered through a number of school curriculum subjects.
The Eatwell Guide also underpins Government catering guidance and standards. Earlier this year, the Government committed to reviewing the School Food Standards to reflect the most recent Government dietary recommendations. These standards are available at the following link:
As set out in our 10-Year Health Plan, the Government has committed to actions to encourage a food environment that supports everyone, including young people, to make healthier choices, including:
Further information on the 10-Year Health Plan is available at the following link:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/10-year-health-plan-for-england-fit-for-the-future
There are a range of actions that have already been taken, including the Soft Drinks Industry Levy, location promotions restrictions, and calorie labelling. Prior to the General Election in July 2024, the Department also legislated to introduce restrictions on the volume price promotions retailers can offer on ‘less healthy’ food and drink in stores and their equivalent places online. These measures came into force in England on 1 October 2025.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the impact of economic factors and the consumption of ultra-processed foods on the prevalence of diet-related illnesses and mental health conditions, and what steps are being taken to address these upstream determinants of public health.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) considered the evidence on the impact of processing on health, including mental health, in 2023 and 2025. The SACN concluded that the observed associations between higher consumption of processed and ultra processed foods and adverse health outcomes are concerning. The SACN noted that studies to date appear to inconsistently account for important factors such as socioeconomic status.
The SACN recommend that on balance, most people are likely to benefit from reducing their consumption of processed foods high in energy, saturated fat, salt, and free sugars, and which are low in fibre. These recommendations align with existing policies for supporting healthier diets and advice to consumers. The SACN will keep the topic of food processing and health under review.
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs’ 2024 report on Food Insecurity also considered inequalities in access to a healthy sustainable diet. Data from the latest National Diet and Nutrition Survey report shows that participants in higher income households, and households in less deprived areas, were closer to meeting some dietary recommendations. However, where diets failed to meet recommendations, this was consistent across the range of income and deprivation.
The Department of Health and Social Care is working closely with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to develop their cross-Government Food Strategy, which aims to improve affordability and access to healthier food, to help both adults and children live longer, healthier lives.
Earlier this year, the Government committed to reviewing the School Food Standards to reflect the most recent Government dietary recommendations. Free school meals will also be extended to all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit from September 2026.
Healthy Start provides funding to pregnant women, babies, and young children under four years old from very low-income households to support a healthier diet. In April 2026, the value of weekly payments will increase by 10%.
The Department is working closely with the Child Poverty Taskforce to develop and deliver an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty.
Asked by: Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour - Slough)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he is taking steps to provide long-term funding arrangements for the Nursery Milk Scheme and the School Milk Subsidy Scheme to ensure continuity of provision for early years and primary education settings.
Answered by Ashley Dalton - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Nursery Milk Scheme is operated by the Department of Health and Social Care and provides reimbursement to early years childcare settings to cover the cost of providing one-third of a pint of milk per day to all children under the age of five years old who attend the setting for more than two hours per day. The School Milk Subsidy Scheme is the responsibility of the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs and partly finances the cost of similar milk provision to children in primary and secondary schools in England and Wales. There are no current plans to change these schemes.
Asked by: Al Pinkerton (Liberal Democrat - Surrey Heath)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that people experiencing financial difficulty are aware of and able to access appropriate (a) financial support and (b) advice during winter months.
Answered by Lucy Rigby - Economic Secretary (HM Treasury)
The government recognises the challenges many households face during the winter months and is committed to ensuring that people experiencing financial difficulty are aware of and able to access the support available.
At Budget 2025, we announced a comprehensive package of measures to ease cost of living pressures. This includes taking an average of £150 off household energy bills from April 2026, expanding the £150 Warm Home Discount to 6 million lower income households, and freezing rail fares and NHS prescription fees for one-year. We are lifting around 550,000 children out of poverty by removing the two child limit, alongside other measures announced this year such as expanding free school meals. The Household Support Fund in England will also continue to help households facing the greatest hardship with the cost of essentials such as food, energy and water.
To ensure people can access support with their finances whenever they need it, the Government also funds the Money and Pensions Service (MaPS) which supports consumers with free, impartial guidance for every stage of their financial lives. Its MoneyHelper services – available online, via webchat and over the phone – operate year-round and offer information on a wide range of financial topics, along with easy-to-use tools and calculators to support people in managing their finances. In addition to this, MaPS delivers a range of national and community-based debt advice services across England to provide specialist support to those in problem debt. The UK Government also provides funding for debt advice in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland, with responsibility for debt advice services resting with respective devolved governments.
Asked by: Freddie van Mierlo (Liberal Democrat - Henley and Thame)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment has she made of the potential impact of Farming in Protected Landscapes funded projects on children; and whether she will bring forward policy proposals to fund these projects beyond 2026.
Answered by Mary Creagh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Since its launch in 2021, the Farming in Protected Landscapes (FiPL) programme has provided funding for nearly 11,000 farmers and land managers to work in partnership with National Parks and National Landscape bodies to deliver projects that benefit the countryside for climate, nature, people and place. The FiPL programme has engaged over 2,000 schools and delivered more than 8,000 school educational visits helping children to get involved and learn about nature.
The FiPL programme is due to end March 2026, and decisions on the future of the programme will be made as part of departmental business planning.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden and Solihull East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many schools have raised concerns with her Department regarding a) the adequacy of funding for free school meals and breakfast clubs where pupils have religious dietary requirements b) what the nature of these concerns has been c) and how each concern has been addressed.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The department spends over £1.5 billion annually supporting free school meals provision to around 3.5 million school pupils. Officials meet regularly with the sector to gather feedback.
The government sets out required minimum standards for school food in the school food standards to ensure that children are served healthy, nutritious meals. The government is reviewing the standards and will be engaging widely with the sector, including faith groups, throughout this process.
We have confirmed over £30 million of funding for the current 2025/26 financial year and around £80 million for the 2026/27 financial year for free breakfast clubs. From April 2026, mainstream schools will be funded at a new increased rate of £25 a day, plus £1 per pupil per day who attends the club. We continue to learn through our programme evaluation and sector engagement, including with faith groups.
Asked by: Saqib Bhatti (Conservative - Meriden and Solihull East)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Department has conducted or plans to conduct an equality impact assessment to examine the impact of universal school meal programmes on pupils with religious dietary requirements.
Answered by Olivia Bailey - Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (Department for Education) (Equalities)
The government sets out required minimum standards for school food in the school food standards to ensure that children are served healthy, nutritious meals at school. The standards do not specify food requirements in terms of cultural and religious needs.
Head teachers, governors and their caterers are best placed to make decisions about their school food policies. We expect schools to act reasonably, providing choices that take account of cultural, religious and special dietary needs, and to work with parents in making appropriate arrangements.
The department aims to revise the school food standards and is engaging with stakeholders to ensure they support the work to create the healthiest generation of children in history. As part of this work, the department will complete a full equalities impact assessment, including the consideration of pupils with religious beliefs.