Parents at 1,400 schools get new free breakfast club - check your postcode
The government has beat its target of adding 2,000 schools to the free breakfast clubs programme this year, with more than 2,700 to be up and running from September
Parents at 1,400 more schools will on Monday find out if they can save up to £450 through free breakfast clubs from September.
The government has beat its target of adding 2,000 schools to the programme this year, with more than 2,700 to be up and running by the start of the new academic year.
More 680,000 children will attend them after the summer holidays, up from 300,000 today, the Department for Education (DfE) From September, schools must also comply with the new legal limits on the number of branded uniform items they can require.
It means parents can buy more of the everyday basics, like trousers and shirts, from any shop or supermarket rather than one pricey supplier. The government’s expansion of free school meals to every household on Universal Credit - saving families up to £500 a year - will also kick in at the same time.
Breakfast clubs are already delivering cumulative savings of nearly £25million to families by serving up over 10 million free breakfasts and five million hours of childcare unlocked. For a family using their club every day that's worth up to £450 and 95 hours a year.
Today’s announcement builds on the biggest ever expansion of funded childcare, now saving families using their full 30 hours an average of £8,000 a year per child.
Labour's Great British Summer Saving scheme was also launched at the end of June to ease the cost of living crisis for families over the summer.
From 25 June to 1 September, VAT has been cut on children’s meals in restaurants, children’s and family tickets for theatres and cinemas, and tickets for family attractions. Children aged five to 15 will also get free bus travel throughout August.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “No parent should have to choose between a summer day out to the beach and kitting their child out for school.
“From September, families will feel the difference at the school gates: free breakfast clubs at 1,400 more schools, an end to expensive lists of branded uniform, and more free lunches for those who need them."
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said the breakfast club announcement is "extremely welcome". He added: “Breakfast clubs can have real benefits and while many schools have been running them in different forms for years, the ambition of making them available to all primary age children is laudable.
"As the roll-out of clubs continues, it’s crucial that the government recognises that each school is unique and some will face significant challenges in setting up new clubs and and adapting existing ones, with concerns including their ability to staff the clubs, the impact on workload, and the costs involved."
