Tories going to axe free school meals

[cannotbelievethistoday]

So I have 2 children in private school.

Labour want to put VAT on private school fees, and extend free school meals to all primary children.

Tories are going to remove infant free school meals.

Bloody hell. And still people will vote Tory.

(My 2 kids are in private school - I totally agree with labour on this one)

If you have 2 kids on £2 a day that's £20 a week, £80 a month. Roughly £800 a year taking out school holidays. Which cancels out the income tax threshold that they were given.

Yes exactly, the reality is that a lot of people can't afford school dinners and for whom packed lunch/ cooked meal won't be a choice.

Well off people trilling about how they are happy to pay and how people shouldn't have children they can't afford to feed doesn't make it a choice for those who can't afford £2.20 per day per child.

The Tories are going to axe the free school meal which are needed by he poorest children.

But do carry on whining about how you dont like Labour.

Fundamentally Tories believe that everyone shoulder try to better themselves and pay their way where possible. We don't believe in entitlement or freeloading. We accept we have to pay for things in life. Simple.

I disagree because you don't accept that you have to pay a reasonable level of taxes to properly fund public services.

What level of tax is enough?

I find it astonishing that 40% (I gather it's the higher-rate tax payers who you think aren't paying enough?) of someone's income would be considered insufficient.

I hate universal benefits in all cases. Take my money, filter it through some bureaucrats who figure out what my family needs, then send it back, diminished and quite possibly earmarked for something I don't want. No thanks.

It should be means tested not all families rely on the free school meals, I can afford to pay for school lunches

FsM will still be means tested (like before) so the poorest will still benefit. Get your facts straight.

the poorest or the laziest. brilliant.

Free school meals for all children will ensure that there is never ever another Daniel Pelka. His parents had the means to provide food for him but decided out of cruelty, not too.

At least with free school meals a child could get a nutritious meal 5 days a week.

Free school meals for all children will ensure that there is never ever another Daniel Pelka. His parents had the means to provide food for him but decided out of cruelty, not too.

Let's assign blame where it's due - not lack of free lunches, but Social Services. Why do they even exist if they can't pick this up?

Most parents don't abuse their children.

No kids where I am get universal free school meals.
None
School meals are attached to very low income or only certain benefits.

For a lot of children the only food they can rely on is the 5 meals they get from school

No kids where I am get universal free school meals.
None

And how do you know this?

In France, the school meals are generally well balanced. Packed lunches are not allowed. So children either eat in the cantine or go home.

Here all these things are means-tested, in the interests of creating a level playing field (egalité in action). As far as I understand, every year each family has it's 'coefficiente' worked out, depending on previous income, size of family etc. Then this 'score' is used to determine what - if anything - the family pays for all manner of public services: from school lunches, to after-school activities, creche fees (anything provided by the state) etc. So we (who are just over the threshold) pay €4,56 per child, per meal... whereas my friend, whose husband is out of work and they have very little income, only pays €0,22 per meal. This information stays strictly between the individual and the town hall - the school / teachers doesn't know who pays what, and the other children certainly don't who's paying what. It takes all the stigma away and allows those who need it to access public services in the same way as those who can afford to pay top dollar. Or euro.

Where will the extra money for staffing come from to run a large enough breakfast club for all students? And has that been taken into consideration on calculations?

This will hit the working poor though as lots will be ineligible and some of these will earn less than those claiming benefits without going to work.

How did parents manage to feed their dc's prior to them starting school? I find it hard to understand why suddenly at the age of 4, parents can no longer afford to provide a basic necessity for their DCs.

It's all very well people going on about' I want to feed my own children.'
Well.
Lucky complacent you.
The point is the current provision is ALSO ( and more importantly) for people who cannot afford food. Not entitled snotty nosed people who can. How about thinking about children other than your own?
And those going on about means testing the provision- no they won't! They are JUST scrapping free lunches.
Offering breakfast and god knows it won't have bacon or eggs. No it will be ceral and toast. Cheap.
May does not care about people starving.
She already said 'People go to Food Banks for all sorts of reasons...'
Yeah for a nice day out for instance. FFS If they take away basic services it will impact on YOU because we will have an unhappy divided society and we wouldn't want you or little Seb to see nasty starving children now would we?
Who knows they may even STEAL his packed lunch... and yes this does happen

Brilliant news, I can afford to pay for my own kids lunches, and those who struggle will still get the support.

Same with Winter Fuel Payments. If my parents can afford 4 holidays a year then why on earth are they in receipt of this benefit.

I understand that, Piglet. It was Edsheer's hearty laughter at the thought that some children might be hungry

Oh FFS

Either you are being incredibly deliberately obtuse or you just didn't bother to read my post properly.

But let me spell it out:

I wasn't laughing 'at the thought that some people might be happy hungry'. I was laughing at the previous posters ridiculous melodramatic hyperbole about 'targeting hungry children'. The majority of children who get the universal FSM have parents who are perfectly capable of paying to feed their own kids. Those who are not able to pay will still receive FSM. Universal FSM are a waste of money and have contributed in children not receiving pupil premium funding because the parents don't realise they can get it because everyone is on 'free school meals'.

This is the problem - people are so ingrained in their own preconception (Tories are scum, Labour are incompetent, Lib Dems are just a bit shit, whatever) that they don't bother to actually engage their brains. I am absolutely not voting Conservative and i never have. I would never say never but the current shower of shit are not getting my vote. I am actually probably going to vote Lib Dem even though, get this, it was then who introduced this policy which I don't agree with. Now I know some people might find that difficult to get their heads around, but that is what happens when you actually look at individual policies of individual parties and decide which one best fits you, rather than just dismissing something out of hand because a particularly party has suggested it.

Infant school children aren't interested in whether you have fsm. They are only interested in whether you have a jo jo bow or whether your football is good enough.

Many families here are well off. Don't know why we should have fsm. It doesn't make sense.

And those going on about means testing the provision- no they won't! They are JUST scrapping free lunches.

Hang on, does anyone have any links on this, as there are very conflicting statements on this thread. Obviously if FSM are scrapped for everyone then that is completely different, but have the Tories said this yet?

The point is the current provision is ALSO ( and more importantly) for people who cannot afford food. Not entitled snotty nosed people who can.

Entitled in what sense?

And those going on about means testing the provision- no they won't! They are JUST scrapping free lunches.

Link please?

I would agree with removing the universal free school meals, it hasn't been proven to help children in any significant way and the (unintended?) effect is that the parents of children entitled to free school meals and pupil premium are claiming because they either don't understand why they should or feel there would be stigma for no benefit.

This unintended effect (and I know BeyondThePage and Nickname made the same point but it bears repeating because it's REALLY important, even in our school where the take up of FSM under the old system was way lower than the national average) is dreadful. So badly thought out. And yet another example of how the Lib Dems let us down badly when they finally got into a place where they could do something effective.

I'm also happy for my tax to be increased. DH isn't, but that's another story. I will be voting Labour. I've never voted Labour (always been Lib Dem) but I live in a safe seat, and our MP is retiring, and I can't risk anything else.

After 2018 it will be a different matter as I'll be in a bloody Tory safe seat then. With an appalling MP who has views to the right of Genghis Khan.

On the subject of means testing, I don't think MPs Second Home allowance should be free to all. It should only be available to those who can't afford to live within a 2-hour commute of Westminster. And MPs who already have a home nearer than this shouldn't be given money to rent and furnish another home, even if they choose to rent out their own house to one of their buddies doing the same thing.

And those going on about means testing the provision- no they won't! They are JUST scrapping free lunches.

You're wrong - link below:

"The Conservative Party plans to scrap free school meals for children in the first three years of their education. Conservatives say they will replace the lunches with free school breakfasts for every pupil in every year of primary school.The Tories argue evidence shows a free school breakfast is as effective at helping children learn as a hot meal at lunch and can be delivered at a tenth of the cost, around £60 million a year. Children from poorer families will continue to get free breakfast and free hot lunches throughout their education."

metro.co.uk/2017/05/18/tories-to-scrap-free-hot-school-meals-for-children-6645181/

Edsheeranalbumparty
'Under plans to be unveiled in the Conservative Party manifesto on Thursday, universal free school lunches for infant pupils in England will be scrapped but free breakfasts offered across the primary years.'
Okay? clear enough. Or google it.
www.itv.com/news/2017-05-17/may-called-lunch-snatcher-over-plans-to-scrap-free-school-meals/
www.thetimes.co.uk/edition/news/theresa-may-s-tories-promise-free-breakfast-for-every-primary-school-pupil-ls5pgw8nc

QueenofPentacles you might consider reading the articles you post more carefully.