Free breakfast clubs for ALL primary school children? Why?

[Safi7]

I’ve been overseas since the election so a bit out of the loop, but is it true that Labour are going to make it standard that all primary schools must now offer free breakfasts to all children, regardless of need?

Fair enough for children from deprived families - but all children?

Where is the money for this coming from?

Are Labour actually saying that in 2024, its now to much to expect parents to actually bother to feed their own children breakfast? This responsibility can just be pushed onto schools instead - as if they haven’t got enough on? Teachers are leaving in droves as it is. Du much is out in them - the jobs is becoming more like social work in too many cases. Who will staff these breakfast clubs and make sure kids are actually eating?

Surely this is just encouraging lazy parenting - ie parents who can well afford cereal / toast / eggs etc it but just won’t bother if their kids can eat at school instead. Plus children will be dumped at school earlier than necessary, just because parents can now get away with it?

Surely it’s better to direct resources where they are actually needed, rather than turn schools into free cafes? Makes no sense.

For lots of kids the free breakfast is the first thing they have eaten since their free lunch the day before

Surely it’s just a. Wraparound club, not everyone will do it.

It doesn’t seem especially odd to me, but I went to a boarding school.

Anyway, better to feed more kids than need it than the other way.

At the very least, children who have been at nursery have learned how to use a knife and fork and sit at a table.

Nope they do not. Their 'using knife and fork' equals stabbing it and chewing around the food like a lolly. Not one knows how to use a knife and cut. They point with cutlery, elbows on the table, chewing with mouths open, talking with food in their mouths. Many use their hands too. Most can't sit down for a whole lunch duration. Parents should be doing this at home.

This is the start of labour dropping more people into poverty. You aren't tackling the root cause so the cycle goes ever on. Why change if someone else can take over your parenting for you? Invest the money innpoor parenting not cheap beige food.

You’ve made your point ad nauseum. Whatever this government does you’ll stick the boot in, they could deliver a gold ingot to your doorstep every Sunday morning and you’d still carp.

Oh yeah because everybody has been accumulating vast wealth for the last 14 years. Seriously where have you been? In an ivory tower with your head in the sand by the looks of it.

The government are, apparently, looking again at all this. It’ll be announced in the October budget. They seem surprised at the fiscal picture.

There's a saying in our household.... Vote Labour and let's all be broke and miserable together!!
On a serious note, I do believe we are now in a race to the bottom. The double whammy on pensioners is just the start.

Let's hope they means test this like they've done with WFP.

There’s a saying in our house that goes “vote Tory and watch Poor people be even poorer on their own while we pull up the ladder.”

Theres not really. There’s usually more swearing than that when it comes to discussing the Tories.

you’ve presumably forgotten the cost of living crisis in the last two years where we have had the first generational drop in the standard of living ever? Or the 90s when we had the longest period of sustained economic growth ever under a Labour government?

So I’ll counter your “race to the bottom” by saying I am glad we are moving away from the “I’m alright Jack” attitudes of the last 13 years.

What are they doing right that is making it successful in Wales? (Buildings, hours suit people, community-mindedness?)

My children go to (free) breakfast club in wales. Drop off is from 8-8.20.

They get toast, fruit and cereal and juice.

It's ran by tas in the school hall.

I don't 'need' to use it but we do use it. It's a nice soft start to the day, the kids enjoy eating breakfast with their friends and playing.

I’m not sure about other schools but at ours I actually think it works well because not everyone uses it. Loads of people on this thread have said they wouldn’t get up early just for free breakfast and it’s the same here. All the SAHPs still drop off at normal start time as well as those who start work nearby at 9, or work from home.
It’s run at the school, they open up the large lunch hall and students go straight into there to have some breakfast then try et go and play with their friends. Because not all kids take it up there’s plenty of room for everyone who attends, plus they get dropped off over a space of about 15 mins (making drop off a lot easier for those who do drop off at normal time). The teaching assistants staff it on a rota basis and really all the staff are usually at the school by 8:15 (when it starts) anyway whether they’re supervising or not. So there’s no issue with recruiting people to run it as it’s just a case of some staff starting 30 mins extra that day

No I haven't forgotten at all, but I do take issue with some of your statements, but we will have to agree to disagree.
However, everyone seems to forget the billions paid out under the furlough scheme, that was unforeseen and therefore not budgeted for. This had to be found from somewhere so it's hardly surprising the country went to custard. I wonder if you remember Mr Starmer wanting to extend furlough, higher benefits and longer lockdowns. If the government of the time had agreed, things would be far worse.
Now the new government have just agreed £9bn in public pay rises, with more on the horizon.
But not to worry, labour will have us all at the same fiscal level in double quick time, wallowing around in the mire and dependant on the state.

What double whammy? It’s £150 a year. Unfortunately the loser in my case will be the users of the foodbank to which I’ve donated mine for the last five years.

Yeah what we didn’t budget for was the Truss-terfuck of the Truss premiership that tanked an already fragile economy and lead to our recession and inflationary spike being longer and more severe than anywhere else’s. As millions still struggling to pay their mortgage and heat their homes will testify.

I feel it's an erosion of family life. Sitting down for breakfast and talking to each other is important.

That is so bad. Parents should be held accountable for this horrific neglect.

The pension pot raid Rachel Reeves announced last week(I think it was last week) forcing pension providers to invest in the governments risky new 'growth plan' to build back Britain. I very much doubt the government will guarantee any securities invested when things go tits-up.

I think that’s an extremely biased and simplistic interpretation. Try harder.

@Whatabonkersworld not everyone thinks as you do- my father in law is 85- he is perfectly ok and thinks it makes perfect sense- as he said to me his 2 sister in laws are on their 3rd cruise of the year together - neither ever worked post marriage - why should they get it when our 26 years old son struggles like mad on £37k in London - 3 adults in a 2 bed flat - many pensioners have substantial assets and refuse to draw down on them simply because they are mean as shit - they moan about benefit culture but are more than happy to receive freebies themselves.

Really, so how would you spin it then? It matters not that it's simplistic, it's the truth and bias has nothing to do with it. If the government are 'encouraging' pension providers to release their equity, it's only fair that the government should guarantee to underwrite the money invested in case of disaster, or are you happy to see a repeat of the Gordon Brown fiasco?

I doubt it would be compulsory. If you're that sort of family, it will continue uninterrupted. If you're not that sort of family, there may be more opportunity for interaction with others?

But, but, but.... I wonder how many on here (and you must admit, there are many!) will suddenly bitch and moan that their relatives have been spending their inheritance!! Heaven forbid some of the entitled on here should enjoy seeing their relatives spend money on themselves.

Bias has everything to do with it. Spin is unnecessary, how about we stick to facts? Who underwrites the commercial investments that the majority of pension providers rely on?