Charity urges Hull councillors to save free school meals for all policy

A leading children’s charity is urging councillors in Hull to keep their successful free school meals policy when they vote on the issue later today.

The Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) says Hull’s pilot scheme, which offers free school meals for all primary aged pupils, has “put the city on the map” with Ministers and other local authorities watching the scheme with real interest.

CPAG has written to all councillors in the city asking them not to pull the plug on the project before the three-year pilot, due to end in May 2007, has been fully evaluated. And 70 MPs from all parties have already signed a parliamentary motion calling on Hull City Council to reconsider its decision to axe the scheme.

Kate Green, CPAG’s Chief Executive, said today:

“All the evidence suggests that the policy has already been a huge success with take-up doubling, more children eating healthier meals and an increase in pupils’ readiness to learn.

“So it makes no sense to pull the plug on it now. I urge councillors in Hull to vote to re-affirm their commitment to the free school meals policy. They should wait to see the final results of the pilot project next spring before making any rash decisions.

“Re-introducing charges for most families will inevitably mean that fewer children get a decent healthy meal each day. Improving the quality of school meals is of course important but it’s not enough. If we’re to really boost healthy eating in school, free meals available to all are essential.

“Nor is it enough to say that the poorest will still get free school meals. Narrow eligibility for them means that thousands of children living in poverty do not qualify in the first place. And even amongst those who are eligible for free meals, one in four children do not get them. Fear of stigma, the bureaucracy involved in claiming them and lack of awareness about who is eligible mean that many children lose out."

Notes to Editors:

1. Councillor Carl Minns, the new Liberal Democrat leader of the council, has said that free school meals will be withdrawn when the pilot scheme ends in May 2007 because the policy is “unaffordable when there are so many pressures on the council’s budget.”
2. A full council meeting will be held today at 2pm and the agenda can be read here: http://web4.hullcc.gov.uk/akshull/users/public/admin/
   kab14.pl?operation=SUBMIT&meet=5&cmte=COU&grpid=public&arc=71
3. EDM 2486 has been signed by Labour, Conservative and Liberal Democrat MPs and can be read here: http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=31057&SESSION=875

For further information from CPAG please contact:
Alex Belardinelli
CPAG Press Officer
Tel. 020 7812 5216 or 07816 909302
abelardinelli@cpag.org.uk