No U-turn over school meals

Oct 29 2008 by Kaiya Marjoribanks, Stirling Observer Wednesday

STIRLING Council’s SNP administration has pledged it will provide free school meals to the area’s youngest schoolchildren.

The promise comes after campaigners wrote to the council’s leaders, seeking reassurance that free school meals would be rolled out to all P1 to P3 pupils in 2010, as agreed with the Scottish Government in November last year.

The campaigners include the Association of Headteachers and Deputes Scotland (AHDS), the Child Poverty Action Group, One Parent Families Scotland, Poverty Alliance and the Scottish Churches Social Inclusion Network.

They are “concerned that the huge benefits to children and families of a universal approach to free school meals could be overshadowed by the reported disagreement on the wider funding settlement between local and national government.”

The campaign believes that, given the consensus that exists on the importance of healthy eating for children’s education, health and wellbeing, it would be “a tragedy if a scheme which has boosted healthy school take-up by extraordinary levels were not to be rolled out across Scotland as agreed”.

It argues that “the further benefit to hard-pressed family budgets cannot be underestimated in these increasingly difficult economic times”.

John Dickie, head of the Child Poverty Action Group in Scotland, said: “It is vital that all local authorities, as well as ministers, stick to the commitments they have made.

“Free school meals were explicitly agreed as part of the funding settlement and underpinning concordat signed between councils and the Scottish Government last year.

“It would be a tragedy if the education, health and wellbeing of our children were to fall foul of an apparent dispute between national and local government. For the sake of children and hard-pressed families across Scotland, the promise of free school meals for every child in the early years of primary school must be kept.”

AHDS general secretary Greg Dempster said: “For some time AHDS has supported the move to extend free school meals and looks forward to its implementation around Scotland.

“There are much-rehearsed nutritional and educational benefits to be had from such a move. Of course the real prize to be had from what is undeniably a significant investment is the potential long-term impact on the health of our nation.”

Councillor Graham Lambie, portfolio holder for children’s services, said: “I am delighted to confirm that the Stirling Council SNP administration is fully committed to delivering free school meals to primaries 1-3, as agreed in the concordat between the Scottish Government and local authorities.

“I look forward to seeing this excellent initiative making a positive change to the health of young people.”