To think that funding free breakfast clubs is wrong-headed?

[WaahWaahWinston]

Government is to fund free breakfast clubs for all primary school children. This doesn't strike me as the best use of money for schools; I imagine there are better things to spend money on that would be of greater educational benefit to children.

It may help a tiny proportion of families but breakfast is probably the easiest and cheapest meal for families to provide to children. (I doubt breakfast clubs will be providing full English or other cooked breakfasts of the sort that one could argue families are hard-pushed to provide.)

So I don't see the compelling need. Why spend money on this of all things, when there must be other improvements that could be funded which would improve education specifically?

We used to have funded breakfast clubs under the last labour government. I'm my school attendance increased dramatically. A marked improvement in concentration furvkids throughout the day. . etc. I'm so onboard with this.

I don't understand your comment. I'm saying I want MORE help for the kids and families who really need it. I don't want rich parents to be given free food and childcare. I don't want tired teachers to have to work longer (unpaid) hours. How am I whipping up hatred? Or are you urging me to?

Yet you seem unaware than some people can work hard but afford neither of those.

@TY78910 I can tell you don't work with large-scale budgeting. Yes, all those things need to be taken into account, because if you don't, it will bite you back in the arse a few months down the line. The schools who currently offer breakfast club (none of the secondaries around here do despite this being a deprived, but huge town) have very limited numbers; I think my youngest child's primary allow 20 - not the 600 they might have to find room for.

And if you've ever had the pleasure of dealing with bus companies and their scheduling when they serve areas with schools, you'd know what a huge ballache it is to reschedule arrival times. And if they have to run an extra service then yes, that costs money, too.

Nearly lost my tea there. Where did you hear that we have a competent government? 😂

The school start time pressure might have some validity.

We have a primary school, secondary school and sixth college all in a row. They have staggered start and finish times to ensure traffic flow. . Adding extra 30mins at the begging of the day would mean the primary start time is directly in the secondary drop off window. So they would either have to bring the secondary start time earlier (and its breakfast club!) Or make the primary day start later and finish later (its already 3.30).

It's good of people with knowledge to share it on here.
All the points are good and wirthy if consideration.
The knockon effects for bus operators and childminders are particularly interesting. Also for families who would like to breakfast together.
The OP's question was not shouldn't we leave the kids to go hungry, it was, is this the best use of funds.

We are not a third world country. In reality poverty is relative and not absolute in the sense parents can afford to feed their children breakfast as has been pointed out on this thread. Although we do have a spread of income in the country I think the decision not to feed your children breakfast is simply neglect and we shouldn't be unafraid of calling it our.

There are parents who do love in an entitlement culture where there is an expectation the state will step in for all the finance revealed to a personal decision to have offspring. Free education and health care absolutely I agree with but free food? Where do you draw the line?

Unfortunately for some parents free breakfast mean just a little more to spend commodities and the removal of a daily hassle. If something is free people take it and it becomes part an expanded benefits system.

We should be looking at it the causes of lack of breakfast and ensuring people understand personal responsibility in these cases instead of adding more bureaucracy onto schools as they increasingly pick up the results of societal failure. The same would apply to fetch brushing, toilet training etc. We are simply taking a basic parental responsibility that should be acted on by the vast majority of citizens in an advanced economy and giving to schools. Is this helpful?

I suggest you do some research on child poverty rates in the UK. Some families can't afford cereal, bananas, milk or basic necessities. How fortunate and naive you are to be completely unaware of the deprivation experienced by some families, this figure is constantly rising too. It's a travesty.

I'm not the PP but yes I think there is too much teaching time. Very long days, the kids are exhausted, and none of it is backed up by actual proven results. Look at Finland. They focus on quality over quantity and they consistently score near the top of educational studies.

https://www.jrf.org.uk/child-poverty Thought I'd help save you some time. It's a dire situation for a lot of families and I am pro any scheme that will alleviate food insecurity for these families. Honestly, who cares if there are other benefits.

Do some research. I honestly can't get over the uneducated posts on MN and utter lack of awareness of the child poverty rates in our country. The impact of benefit cuts coupled with the cost of living crisis has had a huge impact on families already living in poverty. Some families are in work poverty, their wages haven't gone up in line with inflation, and the increase in bills and food costs have pushed these families into absolute poverty. https://www.jrf.org.uk/child-poverty posting again. There are numerous studies and articles on the subject.

Some people are poorer than others granted but I would make the point that unless in the most dire of circumstances parents should make the decision to feed their children. If parents can't afford toast or basic cereal for their children then then we would have to have a completely inhumane benefits system and we dont.

How many households forgo mobile phones, broadband etc. to make sure their children get basic nutrition? For every child coming into school how many parents are there with mobile phones etc. If my children were in danger of not having breakfast I personally would forgo a while range of luxury...I would also do my utmost to get paid employment to feed my child. Maybe I am old fashioned holding such views but I really do think neglect is at the core of this despite worthy documents from charities who exist to promote an agenda.

@mids2019 I bet you think internet is a luxury too.

The national minimum wage continues to increase at a rate greater than many skilled graduate jobs with some graduates now bemoaning the fact they do not earn a great deal above the minimum wage. I can research the cost of bread and milk. It might sound brutal but parents can afford these essential item of necessary if their children's health depended on them.

I just think charities seem to be glossing over the deputy a lot of the hungry children are suffering from neglect possibly being brought in by parental choice. If this were such a problem maybe having food vouchers as part of the benefits system would ensure parents spent money on bread,cereal and milk? Not all parents are making the right choices.

I would go to a local library to use the internet of it meant feeding my children. That is my position others may differ ?

Mums being able to work is a good thing so before school club is essential. Although always have breakfast at home as school run is walking and I need breakfast before work. If children have a second breakfast it's probably healthier than biscuits and cakes after school

With modern life, a phone with some data is pretty essential. Probably cheaper than the bus fare to the library ad well

(I'm meaning something like a monthly data package from GiffGaff, not the latest Iphone. A tenner a month).

Forgoing phones and broadband is likely to lead to poverty nowadays . Need internet for benefits and cheap deals

You forgot the avocados on toast.

You need to check UC fairly frequently. What happens if you have no computer to use? People aren't in poverty due to mobile phones. I would be getting rid of the two child cap immediately.

This. It's 2025. Being able to manage normal life for oneself and a dependent without either a phone or broadband would actually be a niche and luxury situation in itself. You'd need a lot of things in place to be able to pull it off, that most of us don't have.

Free breakfast for all children seems like a great way to get all kids off to a good start and it should be inclusive of all children so that everyone gets to share a common experience. Even better if kids get involved in prepping and serving.

I’d do free lunches for all as well.

I have no stats on this but I’d imagine communally cooked and eaten food such as veg curry and rice or baked potato with salad is less wasteful, better for the environment and better for child health than packed lunches and highly processed foods.

Most schools set homework that requires internet and computer access, benefits require internet access as do GP surgeries. In this day and age the internet is a necessity.

If you've got a local library that you can easily get to without spending more on travel than the cost of broadband, that's open every weekday and will provide you with sufficient guaranteed internet access to manage your daily life then yes, others are going to be in a different position.

People don't always realise that having a library and the attendant resources nearby is no longer a given.