Headteachers were left dumbfounded when the Department of Education sent them a letter reminding them of the importance of ‘healthy’ and ‘hot’ school meals only two days after the Government rejected a campaign to provide free meals to children during the school holidays.
The labour motion for the Government to give free school meals to children during non-term time as families all over the country face financial hardship during the coronavirus pandemic, prompted by Marcus Rashford’s campaign, was rejected by 322 votes to 261.
Despite this, children’s minister Vicky Ford and junior health minister Jo Churchill wrote a letter to headteachers encouraging them to offer hot meals to schoolchildren.
Headteacher Andy Byers said there was anger and ‘plenty of incredulity’ at the timing of the letter from the Department for Education.
Since the vote many local authorities, pubs, cafes and restaurants, including McDonald’s, have announced they would step in and provide food for poor children during the October half-term.
Mr Byers tweeted: ‘Without a hint of irony, Headteachers have received a letter today from the children’s minister reminding us about food standards and our responsibilities to provide students with nutritious food and hot meals. Honestly!’
The letter said: ‘The vast majority of children are in school and we understand schools may be finding it hard at this time to provide children with their usual hot meal at lunchtime especially given the need to minimise contact between bubbles.
‘Furthermore, higher numbers of parents may also be sending their children in with a packed lunch.
‘Schools have flexibility within the School Food Standards around which products/foods they serve across the school week. There is no legal requirement that meals should be hot, however we do encourage this and ask all schools to routinely be offering a varied hot meal option to pupils.
‘It is much harder to comply with the School Food Standards through the provision of cold food alone. I would urge you all to work closely with your caterers to make every effort to ensure children are receiving a healthy and nutritious hot meal at school.’
Joint general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU) Kevin Courtney said: ‘Local authorities, schools and businesses in communities across the country are now stepping in where Parliament has not. This is not, however, sustainable long term and the funding needs to come from Government.
‘Adding insult to injury the children’s minister has sent out a letter to heads today reminding them of the importance of promoting healthy eating in schools. You couldn’t make it up. Learn the lesson and reverse the decision is the only way Boris Johnson must now proceed.’
A Department for Education spokesperson said: ‘All schools have gone to extraordinary lengths to get children back into education this term, and the letter was first and foremost to thank school staff for their efforts in getting kitchens open and once again providing meals to pupils, including those eligible for benefits-related free meals.
‘We recognise the pressures in schools during this pandemic and so we wanted to reassure them that we will not be introducing changes to the School Food Standards at this time but that we expect the current robust standards to still be followed and implemented.’
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