Parents in Manchester could save a combined total of £5.3million annually – £400 each – on schools lunches when a new government scheme comes in this September.
According to the Government, parents have spent up to £400 a year on packed lunches in previous years.
The initiative is believed to affect 13,366 children – aged between four and seven – across Greater Manchester.
Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, who is spearheading the project, said: “Free school meals for infants will not only save families hundreds of pounds a year but will also have an impact on how a child performs in the classroom so that, regardless of their background, every child can have the best possible start in life.
“Pupils at the pilot schools who were all given free meals were found to be up to two months ahead of their peers elsewhere.
“This is one of the most progressive changes to our school system for a long time. My goal is to create a level playing field for all of our children so their success will be determined by their talents and efforts alone and not by their parents’ bank balance.”
Government’s standards for school meals mean parents can also be secure in the knowledge that their children will receive a healthy, nutritious lunch – something which studies have shown contributes to improved concentration and learning in the classroom.
Evidence conducted on behalf of the initiative shows that only around 1% of packed lunches meet these standards.
These changes will also help towards reducing childhood obesity. Currently around 20% of children are already ‘obese’ by the time they leave primary school.
In 2013 Government published the School Food Plan, which aims to transform what children eat in schools and how they learn about food.
£150million has been made available to improve schools’ kitchen and dining facilities, with an additional £22.5million specifically to help smaller schools.
September will also welcome cooking back to the national curriculum, which the Government believe will be a winning recipe combined with the good food provided in schools and will ‘create a generation of children who enjoy food that makes them healthier, more successful and happier’.
Image courtesy of Lunch i Skolan: Overall, with thanks.
