Thousands of children across the region – among 100,000 across the country – will be completely lifted out of poverty, with over 500,000 more children set to get free school meals.
Helen Godwin, the new Mayor of the West of England, has backed the historic move by the government. Children living in households where people are supported by Universal Credit will be automatically entitled to free school meals from the 2026 school year – including in schools, school-based nurseries, and Further Education settings that currently deliver free school meals.
Children having a nutritious meal during the school day has been shown to increase attainment, improve behaviour, and ensure better outcomes.
This move will put nearly £500 back into parents’ pockets, ahead of the national Child Poverty Strategy being set out.
Helen Godwin, the new Mayor of the West of England, said:
“I visited a free breakfast club at a primary school in Bath with the Prime Minister only weeks ago, as they started to be rolled out. We saw the impact of this extra meal and free childcare for children and families. The expansion of free school meals will further help thousands of kids in our region, making a real difference to their lives.
“Every child deserves the best start in life. The previous Labour government lifted almost one million children out of poverty by 2010. This was an immense achievement, which transformed the lives of so many. I know that our new government shares that ambition.
“As with every area that matters to the West Country, I intend to work closely with the government and councils to deliver change that people in our part of the world can see and feel. Tackling child poverty will be no exception to that rule.”
Announcing the move, government ministers have confirmed more than £13 million of additional funding through food charities to ensure that fresh produce that might go to waste ends up on plates instead. Millions of households will receive a permanent yearly above-inflation boost to Universal Credit, alongside raising the national minimum wage; expanding government-funded childcare; and capping the number of branded school uniform items, which are often more expensive.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said:
“Working parents across the country are working tirelessly to provide for their families but are being held back by cost-of-living pressures.
“My government is taking action to ease those pressures. Feeding more children every day, for free, is one of the biggest interventions we can make to put more money in parents’ pockets, tackle the stain of poverty, and set children up to learn.
“This expansion is a truly historic moment for our country, helping families who need it most and delivering our Plan for Change to give every child, no matter their background, the same chance to succeed.”
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said:
“It is the moral mission of this government to tackle the stain of child poverty, and today this government takes a giant step towards ending it with targeted support that puts money back in parents’ pockets.
“From free school meals to free breakfast clubs, breaking the cycle of child poverty is at the heart of our Plan for Change to cut the unfair link between background and success.
“We believe that background shouldn’t mean destiny. Today’s historic step will help us to deliver excellence everywhere, for every child and give more young people the chance to get on in life.”
Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said:
“Poverty robs children of opportunities and damages their future prospects. This is a moral scar on our society we are committed to tackling.
“By expanding Free School Meals to all families on Universal Credit, we’re ending the impossible choice thousands of our hardest grafting families must make between paying bills and feeding their children.
“This is just the latest step of our Plan for Change to put extra pounds in people’s pockets – a downpayment on our Child Poverty Strategy, building on our expansion of free breakfast clubs, our national minimum wage boost and our cap on Universal Credit deductions through the Fair Repayment Rate.”
