Labour estimates over half a million children have become eligible for free school meals during the pandemic

The Shadow education secretary has called on the government to extend meals during half-term break and summer holiday, Chiara Giordano writes

Labour has estimated about half a million children have become eligible for free school meals during the coronavirus pandemic (iStock/Getty Images)

More than half a million children may have become eligible for free school meals during the coronavirus pandemic, according to Labour analysis.

Government data shows that between 23 March 2020 (the start of England’s first Covid lockdown) and 1 October 2020, a total of about 302,400 pupils became eligible for free school meals.

Labour analysis of data received from local authorities in response to Freedom of Information (FoI) requests estimates a further 115,654 pupils became eligible between 1 October 2020 and 1 January 2021.

This data combined suggests 418,064 children became eligible between 23 March 2020 and 31 December 2020 – the equivalent of about 10,348 per week.

According to Labour, applying this across the year from March 2020 to March 2021 would suggest an estimated 549,472 could have become eligible for free school meals by March this year.

In light of the analysis, shadow education secretary Kate Green MP plans to call on the government to extend free school meals during next week’s half-term break and the upcoming summer holiday during a visit to Wolverhampton.

The government’s holiday activities and food programme currently offers £220m of funding for councils to provide food and activities to children eligible for free school meals during four weeks of the summer holiday and a week at Easter and Christmas.

However Labour claims the programme leaves children at risk of going hungry for half of the summer break.

Ms Green said: “The Conservatives have failed to support families throughout this pandemic and are now reliant on local councils to plug gaps in free school meals support throughout the holidays.

“Feeding children is not a half-time activity.

“Labour is calling on the Conservatives to trust parents with the money for free school meals so they can buy the food and supplies their children need throughout the whole of the holidays.”

In October, the Conservatives blocked a plan to extend free meals during the school holidays, arguing it was not the job of schools to “regularly provide food during the school holidays”.

The government was also criticised for handing out “woefully inadequate” food parcels to children eligible for free school meals who were unable to attend school because of the coronavirus lockdown.

Ministers were urged to "step up" and tackle child food poverty during a parliamentary debate on Monday triggered by the campaigning efforts of footballer Marcus Rashford.

More than 1.1 million people have signed a petition launched by the England and Manchester United striker as part of his mission to ensure no child goes hungry.

Opening a Westminster Hall debate on Monday, Labour MP Catherine McKinnell, chairwoman of the House of Commons Petitions Committee, told MPs the petition had three key asks of the government: to provide meals and activities during all school holidays, to expand free school meals to all children under the age of 16 where their parents are receiving benefits, and to increase the value of Healthy Start vouchers and expand the scheme.

Ms McKinnell referenced research by the Food Foundation charity which found an estimated 14 per cent of households, including 2.3 million children, experienced moderate or severe food insecurity in the six months following the start of the March 2020 lockdown, compared to 11.5 per cent before the pandemic.

A government spokesperson said: “We have invested billions into additional welfare spending throughout the pandemic, on top of our £269 million Covid local support grant.

“We have also increased the value of healthy start vouchers by over a third, to help parents of young children purchase healthy food for their families.

“We made sure that schools could provide free school meals to eligible pupils over the past year, including while they were learning remotely, and have also committed to extend the breakfast clubs programme to 2023.

“Our expanded holiday activities and food programme, which provides healthy food and enriching activities to disadvantaged children, will continue to run this summer and Christmas in every local authority in England.”

Additional reporting by PA