Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg used his speech to Liberal Democrat conference to announce that all pupils at infant schools in England are to get free school lunches from September 2014, with equivalent funding for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
In addition, disadvantaged students at sixth form colleges and further education colleges in England will also be eligible for free school meals also from next September. Money is also being provided for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, but as education is a devolved issue, it will be up to those running schools there to decide whether to spend the money on free lunches.
Free school meals were one recommendation in The School Food Plan, commisioned by the Government and launched in July by Henry Dimbleby and John Vincent. They found that in pilots where all children had been given a free school dinner, students were academically months ahead of their peers.
Henry Dimbleby took to Twitter to describe the announcement as “Amazing ground breaking news.”
Nick Clegg said:
In closing the Liberal Democrat Conference in Glasgow, Lib Dem Leader Nick Clegg re-emphasised the impact the Liberal Democrats are having in Government. His speech in full said: