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 increasing the eligibility threshold for means-tested free school meals for Universal Credit recipients in line with (a) inflation and (b) national living wage increases.

Over 2 million pupils are currently eligible for benefits based free school meals (FSM). Close to 1.3 million additional infants receive free and nutritious meals under the Universal Infant Free School Meal policy.

A threshold must be set somewhere, and the department believes that the current eligibility threshold level, which enables pupils in low-income households to benefit from FSM while remaining affordable and deliverable for schools, is the right one.

The department does not have plans to change the current eligibility conditions for FSM. However, the department continues to keep eligibility under review to ensure that these meals are supporting those who most need them.