All schoolchildren from P1 to P5 in Scotland are entitled to free school meals.
But when will that provision be extended to P6 and P7 children?
And will all secondary school pupils also be offered free meals?
With the cost of living soaring, access to free, hot meal is becoming even more important to those families struggling to make ends meet.
And the Scottish Government has previously described free school meals in Scotland as “vital support” ensuring children can get a healthy and nutritious meal and are ready to engage in learning.
Provision of free school meals for all P1 to P3 children began in January 2015 and was extended to P4s in August 2021 and P5s in January 2022.
However, the planned extension of the offer to all P6 and P7s in August 2022 has been delayed.
The Scottish Government has now said the roll out to all primary school children will be complete ‘later’ in this parliamentary term, which runs until May 2026.
Why the delay?
Commitment to provide school meals could overtake ability to provide, according to Education Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville.
She said this could result in a ‘brown bag situation’ of issuing cold lunches rather than hot meals.
At the EIS teaching union’s AGM in June, she said: “In some families that might be the only hot meal that child is getting so we need to look at the practicalities of what would happen if the provision of school meals gets ahead of where the capacity is.”
Local authorities are being given £30 million this year for investment in school kitchens ahead of the next stage of the roll-out of free school meals in Scotland.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “We will continue to work with our partners in local authorities to plan for the expansion of free school meal provision to P6 and P7s.
“This work will be supported by £30m of capital funding to support expansion of catering and dining facilities.”
What about secondary school pupils?
As with P6 and P7 children, secondary school pupils are eligible for free school meals if they or their families claim certain benefits.
The Scottish Trades Union Congress has led calls for free lunches for all in secondary schools too, to end pupil hunger and the stigma of free school meals.
And Ms Somerville said the Scottish Government also wants to trial universal free school meal provision in secondary schools.
Ms Somerville said: “We have very much said we will look at piloting the free school meals approach within secondary schools as well, and we are very keen to move forward with that.
“Again practicalities will have to come into that too.”
Conversation