A local firm is funding free breakfasts at a high school in one of Wales' wealthiest areas because pupils were turning up hungry. Endurance Vehicle Solutions stepped in to pay for free breakfasts at Monmouth Comprehensive after the school trialled the idea but couldn’t continue to fund it this term.
Headteacher Hugo Hutchison said pockets of poverty exist in all areas and a significant number of children in his school had been arriving for the day without eating . He wanted to remove the stigma by providing free breakfast for all.
A trial last term, funded with a small amount of money from the local education authority and the school, was so successful that 1,000 pupils were eating the free breakfasts of fruit, porridge and toast every day. A victim of its own success the scheme was too expensive to continue from school funds, but now Chepstow-based Endurance Vehicle Solutions has agreed to fund it to the May half term.
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Mr Hutchison said the free breakfast offer was making a real difference to the whole school with no child going hungry and teachers noticing better attention and attendance.
“We started a trial of free breakfasts for all our students at the start of January. On day one 81 students turned up. By the end of week one 500 turned up and now over 1,000 of our students access our free breakfasts every day.
“Last term the school paid for it and the LEA gave us a small grant. But the cost of running it at such a pace was too much and we were thinking we’d have to pause it - now we have a donation which will allow it to continue to May half term.”
The headteacher said despite Monmouth's affluent reputation poverty is growing there too in the cost of living crisis. “Monmouth is not the most deprived place in Wales and there’s a perception it is all leafy, but numbers of children eligible for free school meals in our school has nearly doubled since the pandemic from 8% to 15%. Above that there is a layer that are just about managing and are right on the threshold to be eligible.
“We have children coming to school hungry every day. The cost of living crisis has made almost everyone poorer. There are people accessing our breakfasts who don’t need it, but I’ll take that rather than having some students starving all morning.”
Mr Hutchison said he would like to see Wales' universal free school meal offer in primaries extended to secondary pupils. He said it would remove stigma, improve learning and help address inequality and poverty.
The rollout of universal free school meals in primaries started in Wales at the start of this academic year. The youngest children in primary schools have been the first to benefit. The policy for universal free school meals under the Labour government and Plaid Cymru agreement is aimed at addressing the cost of living crisis. It began with reception children in September 2022 before being rolled out to all children of primary school age by 2024.
Mr Hutchison urged the Welsh Government to extend its free school meal offer to secondaries: "As a country are we going to feed all children or just younger children? I don’t see a difference.
"Personally I would go for universal free school lunches and breakfasts. I can see wealthier families don’t need it but how are we going to work it out? I see students in my school for whom the one opportunity to get a hot meal is at school. And we are in a relatively privileged area.
"Wherever you are there is a group of students needing more help than they’re getting. Universal free school meals removes the social stigma. Why is it not a core purpose to make sure children are fed before they learn? Children still get hungry when they’re older - why the disparity between primary and secondary?”
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “Our immediate focus is to extend entitlement through the roll-out of universal primary free school meals. We will ensure that we learn the lessons from rolling out our universal offer in primary schools as we consider any future changes to eligibility criteria for free school meals in Wales.
"We have also written to local authorities reminding them of their discretion to be able to provide meals without charging and of the expectation no child should be denied an offer of a meal if they turn up to school hungry." To get our free Wales Matters daily briefing on the biggest issues affection the nation, click here.
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