The UK government has been called upon to provide more children with free school meals to help tackle the 'devastating reality' of the cost of living crisis in England, teachers say.
According to reports, teaching unions have written to the Chancellor and Education Secretary to urge them to give free school meals to children from families receiving Universal Credit in England.
In a bid to help families struggling under the pressures of soaring household bills as the cost-of-living bites, unions and organisations claiming to represent one million school staff asked Rishi Sunak and Nadhim Zahawi for an “urgent” expansion of the free school meals scheme, WalesOnline reports.
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In a letter seen by the BBC, it said vulnerable children not receiving the meals were facing a “real barrier to learning”. Around one in five pupils currently receive free school meals in England.
The letter added: "We see the devastating reality of children coming to school unable to afford to buy lunch, because their family circumstances means they fall outside the restrictive free school meal eligibility criteria."
A Government spokesperson told the broadcaster: “We recognise that millions of households across the UK are struggling to make their incomes stretch to cover the rising cost of living, which is why, in addition to the over £22billion announced previously, we are providing over £15b in further support, targeted particularly on those with the greatest need.
“The holiday activities and food programme runs during major school holidays, and wider welfare support is available through the household support fund, which helps vulnerable families in need with essentials, such as food and utility bills.”
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