Primary pupils are crying at school because they are so hungry or stealing from breakfast clubs as they have no food at home, MPs have been told.
Labour MP Zarah Sultana read out heart-breaking accounts of hunger in England's schools as she mounted a Commons bid to extend the free school meals scheme to all primary school pupils.
One teacher in Leeds told her that a 7-year-old burst into tears in front of him out of fear they wouldn't have anything to eat that day, while a Year 3 pupil was caught stealing bagels from their breakfast club to eat later.
Some kids come to school with a packed lunch containing little more than a few biscuits and a couple of slices of bread, Ms Sultana told MPs.
"My inbox is flooded with heart-breaking accounts like these and of course they are just a tiny example of the pain and anguish experienced when children are denied a decent meal," she said.
