All primary school children in Westminster will be given free school meals to help families struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
Westminster council will spend £2.7million paying for the lunch of all state school children in Years Three to Six for the next 18 months.
Currently all children in Reception to Year Two are given free school meals funded by the Government but those in older year groups have to pay, unless their parents earn less than the threshold of £7,400 a year excluding benefits.
The Evening Standard’s School Hunger investigation revealed that London has the highest proportion of children in poverty who do not receive free school meals because they do not qualify. Our investigation highlighted the call by the Food Foundation and a coalition of charities for free school meals to be extended to all children living in families that rely on Universal Credit.
