Free school meal
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The term free school meal refers to a sum of money provided for individual pupils in schools throughout the United Kingdom to purchase a lunch time school meal. For a child to qualify for a free school meal, their family or carers are considered by the local borough authority to be unable to fund a lunch time meal. The borough will then provide a sum of money considered acceptable to purchase a full meal everyday at school for that pupil. This usually takes the form of tickets, to ensure that the money is only spent on food at school. Periodical reviews are conducted to assess a child's qualification for this scheme.
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[edit] School League Tables
The percentage of children eligible for free school meals in an area is thought to be a fair measure of deprivation. This figure is therefore used in conjunction with the scores children achieve in SATs, GCSEs and A-levels to determine a school's position in the local and national league tables. If two schools get their children to the same scores, the school with the most children eligible for free school meals is judged to have done a better job, as it has been likely to be teaching children with access to fewer resources and less home encouragement.
[edit] Problems
Free school meals can be seen as stigmatising to those pupils involved; studies have shown that many of those entitled to free meals do not take them and it can have a negative effect on those that do. Another problem is that not all those children who could benefit from the scheme qualify for it. Organisations such as the Child Poverty Action Group have called for school meals to be made free for all pupils to tackle the problems mentioned above.
[edit] School (Nutrition and Health Promotion) (Scotland) Bill
Frances Curran MSP is leading a broad campaign with widespread support through many childrens and anti-poverty organisations to provide free nutritious meals for all Scottish schoolchildren to tackle the problems of poor diet among Scottish schoolchildren[1]. A bill to this effect was proposed in parliament in 2002 but was defeated, the bill is currently being resubmitted, following a Scottish Executive consultation which found that 96% of respondants were in favour of free school meals.
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- Free School Meals (html). Qualifications and Curriculum Authority. Retrieved on 22nd July, 2006.
- Campaign for Free School Meals. Child Poverty Action Group. Retrieved on 18th February, 2006.
- Will McMahon, Tim Marsh (1999). Filling the Gap: free school meals, nutrition and poverty. Child Poverty Action Group, 48. ISBN 1-901698-25-4.
