Hundreds of primary school children will receive free breakfasts from April ahead of a national rollout.
This was confirmed today by Chancellor Rachel Reeves at the Labour conference in Liverpool. The plan was previously estimated to cost around £365million per year but is expected to save “hard-working parents” more than £400 every year.
Ms Reeves described the move as “an investment in our young people, an investment in reducing child poverty, an investment in our economy” in her speech today. Around just 12% of state schools in England offer a taxpayer-subsidized breakfast club through the National School Breakfast Club Programme, according to Institute for Fiscal Studies.
The funding for this was set to end in July 2025. Aside from this national scheme, some charities also deliver breakfast clubs, and some schools pay for clubs out of their own budgets. In some cases, parents have to pay a fee for their children to access a breakfast club.
What is a breakfast club?
A school breakfast club is a place where pupils can eat a healthy breakfast, with each session taking place before school starts. They are typically run on school premises by teachers, teaching assistants, catering staff or volunteers. Under current rules, schools who are signed up to the National School Breakfast Club Programme receive a 75% subsidy for the food and delivery costs of that are associated with breakfast clubs.
Pupils at these schools are entitled to free breakfast clubs at no charge to the parents. It is down to each school to decide which types of food they want to order – this could be anything from toast, to cereal or porridge. At the moment, schools in disadvantaged areas are eligible if they have 40% or more pupils in bands A-F of the income deprivation affecting children index (IDACI). This is a measure of the proportion of children aged up to 15 who are living in income-deprived families.
When will free breakfast clubs be rolled out?
Free breakfast clubs will be rolled out in 750 primary schools across England in the summer term as part of a £7million pilot. The Department for Education then hopes to have the scheme rolled out nationwide in September. A spokesman for Rachel Reeves said: “The idea being that the summer term is the pilot before the full rollout as soon as possible, which we hope to be the beginning of the new school year in September.”
Will my school get free breakfast clubs?
The Department for Education has not yet revealed a list of the first school – it will pick the first locations over the coming months. Ms Reeves’ spokesman said: “As part of the pilot we need to see how that scheme works in towns, cities, rural communities. It’s not based on need, it’s based on how we can get the pilot ready for the full rollout later in the year.”