Welsh government announces plans for free school meals during holidays into 2021
- Published
The Welsh government has announced plans to provide free school meals for all school holidays up to and including Easter 2021.
The government will spend £11 million to make sure free school meals are provided during every school holiday.
More than 75,000 pupils aged between five and 15 from are eligible for free school meals across Wales.
The plan will also aim to help younger children who attend nursery for full days and sixth form pupils.
Welsh Education Minister Kirsty Williams says she hopes it provides, "some reassurance in these times of uncertainty".
Rashford welcomes Welsh plans
Manchester United forward Marcus Rashford, who has campaigned for more help for schoolkids during school holidays, has welcomed the plan for Wales which he said would have "a significantly positive impact on children".
The England forward has been campaigning for food vouchers for children more generally and successfully appealed to the UK government to change it's mind about free meals vouchers during the summer holidays.
Marcus said: "Having this... in place for the foreseeable future will have a significantly positive impact on children who are struggling to engage in learning due to anxiety and fear, not to mention the noise of their rumbling stomachs."
No child in 2020 should be sat in a classroom worried about how they are going to access food during the holidays, and the impact that will have on their parents when matched with unemployment, ill health and, in some cases, personal loss. There is still so much more work to be done to protect this next generation but I welcome the Welsh Government's swift response to this urgent need in protecting the most vulnerable children across the country. Our children and their welfare should never not be the priority.
- Published16 June 2020
- Published14 October 2020
