Free school meals ‘auto-enrolment’ scheme has fed 20,000 more children
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Twenty local authorities in England signed up eligible pupils without waiting for parents to do so. A new scheme enabling families to sign up to free school meals has enabled 20,000 more children to be fed. As well as preventing those children from going hungry, the “auto-enrolment” pilot project is saving households hundreds of pounds a year.
A total of 20 local authorities in England this year decided to identify pupils who qualify and sign them up without waiting for parents to do so. It is now understood another 40 local authorities are considering auto-enrolment, according to the University of York, which led the initiative.
The scheme is also generating millions of pounds in extra funds for schools – because pupil premium grants, intended to help schools cater for pupils facing disadvantage, are linked to the number of children claiming free school meals, providing £1,455 per primary pupil and £1,035 per secondary pupil.
For years, children from some of the poorest households across the country have been missing out because their parents or carers have not enrolled them. Peter Lamb, the Labour MP for Crawley, has introduced a private member’s bill, which is due for its second reading in March, in the hope of bringing about a nationwide system in which qualifying families would be automatically registered, and parents would have to opt-out rather than opt-in.
