As reported by The Guardian, charities push ministers to include special schools and alternative provisions in free breakfast club expansion, ensuring no child misses out
Ministers are coming under mounting pressure to extend free breakfast clubs in primary schools to cover pupils in special schools and alternative provision to ensure they do not miss out on Labour’s leading education policy.
The government is planning to unveil the children’s Wellbeing Bill early next year, outlining plans for free breakfast clubs in all primary
schools in England. Ministers say the project – one of its key promises before the 4 July general election – will help children concentrate more in school, and make a big contribution to the wider fight against poverty by saving “hard-working parents” more than £400 every year.
But charities and organisations working with Send (special educational needs and disabilities) schools, and other institutions such as pupil
referral units are insisting that the legislation must refer to all “primary aged pupils” rather than just “primary schools” to make sure
that many of those most in need are not left out.
Stephen Kingdom, campaign manager of the Disabled Children’s Partnership, pointed to research showing the financial pressures on parents looking after children with disabilities: “When thinking about school breakfast, it’s vital that pupils in settings other than primary schools are offered the same support as their peers. To do otherwise would be unjustified.
“Research from Pro Bono Economics, commissioned by the Disabled Children’s Partnership, found that couples in work with disabled children earn an average of £274 less each week than couples with nondisabled children. The financial, practical and social benefits that school breakfast delivers are clearly needed to support children, families and communities in all schools.”
The calls for education secretary Bridget Phillipson to widen the scope of the programme come before chancellor Rachel Reeves’s first budget on 30 October in which she promises to start filling a £22bn black hole left by the Tories.
A spokesperson for the Department for Education said: “Breakfast clubs will ensure every child, no matter their circumstances, is well prepared for school and can achieve their full potential by providing a supportive start to the day. We will work closely with the sector as we
develop the breakfast club programme and will share the details in due course.”
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