Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the letter from Baroness Williams of Trafford to all peers on 22 October 2020 on issues raised during the Report stage of the Immigration and Social Security Co-ordination (EU Withdrawal) Bill, whether the Department for Education’s review of how immigration status and restrictions interact with free school meal and other educational entitlements was completed during the autumn term; if so, (1) whether, and (2) when, this review will be published; and if not, when this review will be completed.

We are working with departments across government to evaluate access to free school meals for families with no recourse to public funds. This review has not been formally concluded at present. In the meantime, the extension of eligibility will continue with the current income threshold until a decision on long-term eligibility is made.

Once the review is complete, we will update our guidance accordingly. Our current guidance regarding the extension is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-free-school-meals-guidance/guidance-for-the-temporary-extension-of-free-school-meals-eligibility-to-nrpf-groups.