It is estimated that at least 900,000 children living in poverty in England are missing out on free school meals (FSMs) but, in a newly released article, three University of Manchester academics argue that this figure does accurately reflect the true depth of child poverty across the country.
In their piece, published by Policy@Manchester, Dr Carl Emery, Dr Louisa Dawes and Sandra Clare highlight Department for Work and Pensions data which shows that 29% of children in the UK are growing up in poverty, with the number rising to almost half of all families with more than three children.
They write: “These statistics paint a dire picture, yet there is no single data source that fully captures child poverty in the United Kingdom. In English schools, FSMs tend to be a proxy for measuring child poverty. FSMs can be applied for by families in receipt of certain means-tested benefits and the number of pupils eligible for FSMs has steadily increased over the last decade to 23.8% of pupils.”
Emery, Dawes and Clare acknowledge that the FSM offer has been extended over the past four years, with the new Labour government also confirming its intention to introduce free breakfast clubs in every primary school.
They continue: “However our research shows that as one under-served group becomes recognised, so another is revealed.”
They point out that the latest available statistics on school exclusions disclose that, of the 263,904 pupils suspended from school, 55% were FSM eligible.
The academics write: “The statistics also show that permanent exclusions are over four times higher for FSM eligible pupils than for non-FSM eligible pupils. It is not clear whether those with an FSM entitlement facing temporary or permanent exclusion from school are receiving it.”
Further, many other children are absent for reasons other than exclusions including because local educational provision does not match their needs, or they are being home educated.
Emery, Dawes and Clare explain: “Government guidance says that children who are ‘temporarily not attending school’ should receive a weekly food parcel, packed meals or supermarket vouchers to the value of an FSM. However, with school and local authority budgets becoming increasingly strained, it is not clear that this guidance is being implemented in practice.”
The authors put forward a series of policy recommendations to address the problems their research has identified, including a call for the government to introduce universal FSMs for all children in education aged three to 18.
They write: “The documented cost for this would be £2 billion, and accountancy firm PwC identified that free school meals could generate £41.3 billion for the economy, increasing lifetime earnings and saving costs for the NHS.”
Emery, Dawes and Clare address concerns from organisations such as Impetus about the universal approach already in place in London that, as FSM is the entry point to pupil premium funding, pupils from disadvantaged families could be left behind and schools short-changed.
They argue: “This critique illuminates a structural policy problem that, by using FSM as the gatekeeper to pupil premium funding, millions of children are already missing out and going hungry too. We would therefore also recommend that pupil premium funding be separated from FSM.”
And, in a final piece of advice to policymakers, they add: “For children not currently in school, we recommend local authorities administer payments to those taking charge of their education, including their parents, to ensure they are well fed.”
‘Breaking down barriers with free school meals’ by Dr Carl Emery, Dr Louisa Dawes and Sandra Clare is available to read on the Policy@Manchester website.
