Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help reduce the attainment gap between children on Free School Meals and their peers.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
‘Every child achieving and thriving’ establishes the department’s plan to deliver improved outcomes for all children, regardless of their background or where they live. Our ambition is for all children to achieve higher standards and for the disadvantage gap to be halved.
The department’s approach is comprehensive and includes rebuilding early family support, improving teacher recruitment and retention so every child benefits from high-quality teaching, broadening the curriculum alongside access to high-quality enrichment, and launching two place-based missions, Mission North East and Mission Coastal, to drive improvement in areas where outcomes remain stubbornly low.
The government has introduced the Enrichment Expansion Programme funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and delivered in partnership with the department, which will work with over 400 schools in the most disadvantaged areas.
The department is also taking steps to support schools and parents to work in partnership by establishing minimum expectations for parental engagement. Successful parental engagement can have a particularly significant impact for the most disadvantaged.
On English and maths, the department is funding the RISE English and Maths Hubs programmes to help schools improve teaching practice and pupil outcomes.
Additionally, we are providing around £3.2 billion of pupil premium funding in the 2026/27 financial year to help raise the educational outcomes of disadvantaged 5 to 16-year-olds. We will also introduce government funded pupil premium strategy reviews for schools that need additional support. These targeted reviews will equip school leaders to improve outcomes for disadvantaged children.
Asked by: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat - Taunton and Wellington)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment her Department has made of the difference between the Universal Infant Free School Meals funding rate and the average cost of meal provision charged by catering providers; and whether she intends to increase the funding rate to reflect rising food and operational costs.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The cost of providing a school meal varies between schools and catering providers, reflecting differences in local circumstances, operating models, procurement arrangements and contractual terms.
Universal infant free school meals are funded through a separate grant at a rate of £505 per eligible pupil, which assumes that each pupil takes 190 meals over an academic year. The government is committed to ensuring that eligible pupils receive a nutritious meal during the school day and that schools retain flexibility to determine the catering arrangements that best meet their needs. Schools can access procurement support through the Get Help Buying for Schools service.
The department is working across government to address rising costs. We continue to engage with the sector to understand costs to caterers and schools and to support delivery of school food. As with all programmes, funding arrangements are kept under review as part of wider spending decisions.
Asked by: Wendy Morton (Conservative - Aldridge-Brownhills)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate her Department has made of the additional cost per meal of implementing the revised School Food Standards; and whether funding will be available to schools and caterers for those costs, including kitchen equipment and staff training.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The department wants the updated School Food Standards to result in nutritious and affordable menu options. Throughout the development of the revised standards, the department engaged closely with caterers, including through piloting menus based on proposed changes, and will continue to work with the sector to support implementation.
The updated standards will come into force in September 2027, subject to approval by Parliament. This will provide schools, caterers and supply chains with a substantial lead-in period to prepare for any necessary operational changes.
Mainstream schools receive a single core funding allocation, rather than separate budgets for individual elements of provision, such as catering. In 2026/27, schools can receive £505 for each pupil recorded as eligible for free school meals in the October school census. This funding is provided as an annual per-pupil amount and forms part of a school's overall core funding allocation.
Asked by: Lord Walker of Broxton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what progress has been made on data-sharing arrangements between the Department of Work and Pensions and Department for Education to ensure that children automatically qualify for free school meals as their families move onto the expanded Universal Credit from September 2026.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and tackling child poverty. We want to ensure that every family that needs support can access it. Extending free school meals to all children in households receiving Universal Credit represents a significant step towards achieving that objective. The expansion provides over half a million additional children with access to a free, nutritious lunchtime meal and is expected to lift around 100,000 children out of poverty by the end of this Parliament.
The department has upgraded the eligibility checking system, which makes it easier to check if children are eligible for free meals. We also have worked closely across government, including with the Department for Work and Pensions, and with schools and local authorities to support implementation and raise awareness.
The department will monitor take-up as the expansion is implemented.
Asked by: Lord Walker of Broxton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans, if any, they have to introduce national auto-enrolment for free school meals for all children in households receiving Universal Credit.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and tackling child poverty. We want to ensure that every family that needs support can access it. Extending free school meals to all children in households receiving Universal Credit represents a significant step towards achieving that objective. The expansion provides over half a million additional children with access to a free, nutritious lunchtime meal and is expected to lift around 100,000 children out of poverty by the end of this Parliament.
The department has upgraded the eligibility checking system, which makes it easier to check if children are eligible for free meals. We also have worked closely across government, including with the Department for Work and Pensions, and with schools and local authorities to support implementation and raise awareness.
The department will monitor take-up as the expansion is implemented.
Asked by: Lord Walker of Broxton (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the number of children who do not receive free school meals they are entitled to; and what steps they are taking to ensure that all eligible children receive free school meals.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is committed to breaking down barriers to opportunity and tackling child poverty. From September 2026, eligibility for free school meals (FSMs) was extended to all children in households receiving Universal Credit, providing over half a million additional children with access to a free, nutritious lunchtime meal. The department recognises the vital role played by FSMs and encourages all eligible families to claim the support to which they are entitled.
The department has upgraded the Eligibility Checking System, making it easier to identify children who are eligible for FSMs. We have also worked closely across government, including with the Department for Work and Pensions, as well as with schools and local authorities, to support implementation and awareness of the expanded entitlement.
The department does not routinely assess the number of children who are entitled to FSMs but do not receive them.
The department will continue to monitor take-up of FSMs following implementation of the expansion, including through the school census.
Asked by: Alex Barros-Curtis (Labour - Cardiff West)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to help reduce costs to parents related to returning to school in September 2026.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
As part of the government’s work to reduce child poverty and ease cost pressures on families, the department has put in place a major package to support families with back-to-school costs.
Over 3 million children from families receiving Universal Credit will now benefit from free school meals, marking a major contribution to the government’s work to lift over a half a million children out of poverty, the biggest reduction in a single Parliament since records began.
This is alongside 1400 more free breakfast clubs opening across the country, saving families up to £654 per child per year on childcare costs, and new limits on expensive branded school uniforms, which could save some families up to £50 per child on the back-to-school shop.
Families benefiting from free school meals, free breakfast clubs and cheaper uniforms could save up to £1,200 a year, while eligible working parents using government-funded childcare could save up to £8,000 a year.
Asked by: Baroness Stedman-Scott (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what categories of information are collected or processed by the Department for Education’s Risk of NEET Indicator tool to identify young people at risk of becoming not in education, employment or training.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is taking forward a range of measures to prevent young people from becoming not in education employment or training (NEET), including improving identification, tracking and data sharing.
The department’s Risk of NEET Indicator tool brings together a range of indicators associated with an increased risk of becoming NEET. These include special educational needs and disabilities, attendance in alternative provision, mental health needs, care experience, Children in Need status, youth offending, caring responsibilities, parenthood or pregnancy, refugee / asylum-seeker status, substance misuse, exclusion from school or poor attendance, and eligibility for free school meals.
The tool is intended to support local authorities and their partners in the early identification of young people who may require additional support to participate and remain engaged in education, employment or training.
Asked by: Joshua Reynolds (Liberal Democrat - Maidenhead)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to set a target for reducing the number of households using food banks.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are committed to tackling poverty and reducing the need for emergency food support. The Households Below Average Income and Family Resources (HBAI) publication provides annual high-quality official statistics which are used to track a range of measures, including poverty, food security and food bank use. Statistics on the number of individuals living in food insecure households in the UK were first introduced in 2019/20.
Both our Child Poverty Strategy and action to address the manifesto commitment to reduce reliance on emergency food parcels draw on high-quality data produced in the HBAI that covers poverty, food insecurity and food bank use.
Furthermore, we have taken action to address poverty and to reduce the need for emergency food support through targeted social security measures. This includes the removal of the two-child limit in Universal Credit which will lift 450,000 children out of poverty, and the expansion of free school meals to all households receiving Universal Credit which is expected to lift 100,000 children out of poverty by the end of this Parliament.
Asked by: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat - Yeovil)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that affordable (a) childcare and (b) holiday provision are available in (i) school holidays and (ii) inset days for working parents in Yeovil constituency.
Answered by Paul Waugh - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Education)
The government is committed to improving access to holiday provision for school-aged children. Families can receive support with costs through Tax-Free Childcare, Universal Credit childcare and the Flexible Support Fund.
Through the holiday activities and food programme, we are investing over £600 million across 2026/27 to 2028/29 to provide free holiday club places, healthy meals and enriching activities for eligible children during school holidays in England.
We are also providing local authorities with £12.9 million in 2026/27, to support their statutory duty to secure sufficient childcare. As part of this duty, local authorities ensure they understand supply and demand for school-age childcare, including paid holiday provision. It is clear in published guidance that holiday childcare includes inset days.