Council to fund school meal vouchers for 61,000 children

Birmingham City Council is to pay for supermarket vouchers for the families of the 61,000 children in the city who receive free school meals, so that no child goes hungry while schools are closed because of the coronavirus outbreak.

The council has acted ahead of the government's national free school meal voucher scheme, the details of which have yet to be published.

How it will work

The vouchers can be used in major supermarkets. Schools will run the scheme, sending electronic codes to families or printing vouchers for those who cannot use electronic codes.

Details have been shared with schools, which will contact the families of their free school meals pupils early next week to make arrangements. The council will keep the scheme under review once government guidance on the national scheme is issued.

"We can't wait"

Councillor Jayne Francis, cabinet member for education, skills and culture, said the council did not want families to be left waiting.

"We can't wait until we get details of how the national voucher scheme will work, so we have made arrangements for Birmingham families to be able to access supermarket vouchers through their child's school," she said.

"Thousands of families across Birmingham rely on free school meals and it was really important for the council that the closure of schools did not lead to any children missing out on food. I'm delighted we have been able to put arrangements in place to prevent that from happening."

A city in lockdown

The announcement comes in the first week of the national lockdown announced by the Prime Minister on 23 March, under which people have been told to stay at home except for essential shopping, exercise, medical needs or travel to work where it cannot be done from home.

Schools across the country closed their doors to most pupils at the end of last week. They remain open only for the children of key workers, such as NHS staff, and for vulnerable children.

For many families, the closures bring an immediate worry about food. A free school meal can be the most reliable hot meal of the day for a child from a low-income household, and with many parents facing a sudden loss of income as businesses close, the pressure on household budgets is growing.

Support across the city

The council is working with communities, charities and partners across Birmingham to support vulnerable residents through the outbreak. People who need help are being encouraged to contact the council, and residents are being asked to check on elderly or isolated neighbours while following the rules on social distancing.

The school meal voucher scheme is one of the first concrete measures to help families through what is likely to be a long period of disruption. With no date yet set for schools to reopen, it offers some reassurance to thousands of parents that their children will not miss out on the meals they would normally have received in the classroom.