All primary children in London to receive free school meals for a year

The new scheme is designed to help families cope with the cost-of-living crisis facing households.

Khan has repeatedly called for the Government to make free school meals available to all children.

The mayor’s office said that hundreds of thousands of children live in poverty, but do not receive them due to the Government’s strict eligibility criteria and lack of universal provision.

It said the plan would help around 270,000 primary school children and save families in London around £440 this year.

Speaking about his own experience as a child growing up in London he said free school meals were ‘a lifeline’.

He said, ‘My siblings and I depended on them to eat while at school and my parents relied on them to give our family a little extra breathing room financially. The difference they can make to children who are at risk of going hungry – and to families who are struggling to make ends meet – is truly game-changing.’ 

The £130m emergency scheme will start in September and cover the 2023/24 academic year, and will ensure that all primary-age children will have access to universal free school meals for one year. The scheme is one-off funding from additional business rates income.

Currently a household on universal credit must earn less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including benefits), regardless of the number of children in the family, to be eligible. This means that many children from working families in poverty are not entitled to free school meals.

The mayor said he hoped that making free school meals available to all would reduce the stigma that can be associated with being singled out as low income, and boost take-up among families who need them most.

Speaking ahead of a visit to his old school Fircroft Primary, in Tooting, Khan, said, ‘The cost-of-living crisis means families and children across our city are in desperate need of additional support. I have repeatedly urged the Government to provide free school meals to help already stretched families, but they have simply failed to act.

‘This is why I’m stepping forward with an emergency £130m scheme that will ensure every single primary pupil in the capital receives free school meals. This will save families hundreds of pounds over the year, ensuring parents aren’t worrying about how they’re going to feed their children. It will also guarantee every primary school student a healthy, nutritious meal – meaning they don’t go hungry in the classroom and can better concentrate on their studies.’

Mayor of London Sadiq Khan visiting Fircroft Primary in Tooting, on Monday

The London boroughs of Newham, Islington, Southwark and Tower Hamlets already offer universal primary school free school meals, and Westminster started offering them in January for 18 months.

Based on the average cost of a hot school meal for a primary school child, which is between £2.25 and £2.35 in London, and that children are expected to attend school for 190 days across the academic year, the saving for families of the new scheme equates to around £440 a year. 

The move has been welcomed by charities, teaching unions and food campaigners.

Victoria Benson, CEO of Gingerbread, the single parent charity, said that the cost-of-living crisis was ‘brutal’ for many single parents who were ‘stretched beyond breaking point’.

‘It will be a huge relief to many parents that their child will now be fed at school and we hope it will mean fewer children in London will experience hunger.’

Anna Taylor, executive director, the Food Foundation, said, ‘We applaud London’s mayor for taking timely action to support families fighting the cost of living by ensuring every primary school pupil gets a nutritious lunch, no matter their background. This is a monumental step forward for safeguarding children’s diets, well-being and learning across the capital. However, outside of London, hundreds of thousands of children living in poverty still don’t qualify for a Free School Meal. Central Government must now honour its levelling up commitment by investing in Free School Meal expansion for every community in the upcoming budget.’

Kevin Courtney, joint general secretary of the National Education Union, said, ‘The mayor’s announcement will help families to navigate the cost-of-living crisis, will ensure that all children are fed during the school day, and will allow schools to best support their communities. The Government must now end its inaction and commit to funding free school meals for all in primary across the rest of the country, and long term.’

A Department for Education spokesperson said, 'Since 2010 the number of children receiving a free meal at school has increased by more than two million, thanks to the introduction of universal infant free school meals plus generous protections put in place as benefit recipients move across to universal credit.'

The DfE said it continues to keep all free school meal eligibility under review, to ensure that these meals are supporting those who most need them.