Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the annual value per child of providing free school meals in England.

Free school meals provide a healthy, nutritious meal to children and young people, and help to ensure they are well nourished, develop healthy eating habits and can concentrate and learn. The department estimates the cost of a free school meal to be £2.30 per pupil per day, based on the average cost of providing a meal according to a survey carried out by the School Food Trust. With 190 school days in each academic year, this is an annual cost of £437 per pupil, inclusive of the school’s relevant fixed costs.