Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to increase the proportion of eligible children who claim their entitlement to a free school meal; and if she will take steps to (a) reduce the complexity of application forms, (b) provide forms in multiple languages, (c) increase awareness of the free school meal entitlement and (d) help tackle stigmas associated with claiming free school meals.

There are currently around 2.1 million pupils eligible for and claiming free school meals (FSM). The department recognises the vital role played by FSM and strongly encourages schools and local authorities to support eligible families take this entitlement up.

To make claiming free meals as easy possible, we have developed a model registration form to help schools encourage parents to sign up for FSM, which is available in the department’s published guidance.

The department also provides the Eligibility Checking System, which allows local authorities to quickly verify eligibility for FSM. Improvements to this system will be rolled out nationally by March 2026, to allow parents and schools to check eligibility for free meals independently from their local authorities, which has the potential to make claiming FSM easier.

Further to this, the department is aware of a range of measures aimed at supporting take-up of FSM, including through approaches being trialled by local authorities. We welcome local authorities taking action to ensure government support reaches families, subject to them meeting legal requirements, including those on data protection.

We continue to engage with stakeholders and other government departments to better understand potential barriers to claiming free meals, including stigma. We will consider whether further work to improve enrolment for free meals is needed through the work of the child poverty taskforce.