assignment-modies Flashcards
A YouGov poll commissioned by the Food Foundation found that 2.4 million (17%) children are living in food insecure households, and two million (14%) children have received smaller portions, a reduced number of meals and/or low-cost, less nutritious meals because their parents have run out of food.
Free school meals have been effective in relieving these families in Scotland with the introduction of free school meals for primary 1 to 5. This shows that a significant number of young children living in poverty could be helped by expanding the current entitlement for FSM to allow free children to be eligible.
“Free school meals are a crucial element of the Scottish Government’s ambition to eradicate child poverty, and the provision is currently available to over 273,000 pupils across Scotland, saving families who take up the offer around £400 per child per year”
this displays that with the implication of universal free school meals , could mean more families throughout the UK could relieve themselves of financial pressure to keep up with Rising costs and use the funds that would usually be used for packed lunches or grocery’s to pay for household bills to give their families a better quality of life .
“In 2020, the Education Policy Institute found that primary school children from low-income backgrounds are more than nine months behind their more affluent peers when they leave primary school”
Another reason free school meals should be made universal is because it would increase the quality of children’s education. When pupils do not have enough nutrition throughout the day, they tend to feel tired, unmotivated, and stressed during class time, meaning they struggle to retain information
“When universal free school meals in primary schools were piloted in two areas in England in 2009-11, 10–11-year-olds were found to make around two months’ more progress, on average, than similar pupils in comparison areas
Therefore, this shows that with the introduction of universal free school meals, children will get an excellent quality education and have a significantly higher chance of succeeding later in life.
“Children living in more deprived areas are more likely to be obese. In 2022/23, 5.8% of children aged 4-5 living in the least deprived tenth of areas of England were obese”
this displays that those living in poorer areas are more likely to be obese meaning free school meals could be beneficial in providing a subsequently healthy diet,
