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Free School Meals: Finance

Asked by Damian HindsConservativeDepartment for EducationTabled Answered 22 April 2025UIN 44431

The question

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, when she next plans to review the per-meal funding rate for free school meals.

Answered by Stephen Morgan

The department spends over £1.5 billion annually on the provision of free and nutritious meals to 2.1 million of the most disadvantaged school pupils, 90,000 low-income students in further education, and 1.3 million infant pupils. In addition to this, eligibility for free meals drives billions of additional pounds in disadvantage funding.

The government will continue to engage with schools to ensure high-quality meals are provided for children. As with all government programmes, the department keeps free school meal provision under review.

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