Cambridgeshire schools successful in bid for £460m repair pot
Ten projects at schools and sixth forms in a county have been awarded funding as part of a £460m pot for essential repairs.The money will be spent on new boilers, upgrades to electrical rewiring, fire safety improvements and structural repairs in buildings in Cambridgeshire. Across the East of England, 106 schools out of 270 were successful in applying for funding, worth £80.4m in total.Bridget Phillipson, the Education Secretary, said the investment was about "showing children that education matters".
Projects approved in Cambridgeshire included urgent structural repairs to a building at Abbey College, Ramsey, and replacing five of its boilers with a new heating system.Olive Academy in Cambridge was granted funding for a fire alarm, fire safety and full electrical rewire, while Long Road Sixth Form College in the city was granted money for urgent fire safety and electrical improvements and a replacement boiler and heating distribution system.There will also be an "urgent" fire door replacement and water quality improvements at Northborough School Primary in Peterborough.The projects will be carried out during the 2025-2026 financial year, with the first upgrades expected to begin this summer.Ms Phillipson said: "Parents expect their children to learn in a safe warm environment. It's what children deserve, and it is what we are delivering."This investment is about more than just buildings – it's about showing children that their education matters, their futures matter, and this government is determined to give them the best possible start in life."More than 4,000 academies, sixth form colleges and voluntary-aided schools across England were eligible to apply for the funding.Across England, just 28% of applications for funding for projects were successful.
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Leader Live
20 minutes ago
- Leader Live
All pupils in families on universal credit to be entitled to free school meals
Hundreds of thousands more children across the country will be able to access means-tested free school meals when the provision is extended from September 2026, the Department for Education (DfE) has said. Currently, households in England on universal credit must earn below £7,400 a year (after tax and not including benefits) to qualify for free school meals. But the Government has announced that every pupil whose household is on universal credit will have a new entitlement to free school lunches from the start of the 2026/27 academic year. The move comes after campaigners and education leaders have called for free school meals to be extended to all children whose families are on universal credit to ease pressures on young people living in poverty. Nearly 2.1 million pupils – almost one in four of all pupils (24.6%) – in England were eligible for free school meals in January 2024. The DfE has said more than half-a-million more children are expected to benefit from a free meal every school day as a result of the expansion, and nearly £500 will be put back into parents' pockets every year. It suggested that the expansion will lift 100,000 children across England completely out of poverty. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: 'Feeding more children every day, for free, is one of the biggest interventions we can make to put more money in parents' pockets, tackle the stain of poverty, and set children up to learn. 'This expansion is a truly historic moment for our country, helping families who need it most and delivering our Plan for Change to give every child, no matter their background, the same chance to succeed.' The DfE is due to release data on Thursday morning showing the number of state school pupils in England who are eligible for free school meals. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: 'It is the moral mission of this government to tackle the stain of child poverty, and today this government takes a giant step towards ending it with targeted support that puts money back in parents' pockets. 'From free school meals to free breakfast clubs, breaking the cycle of child poverty is at the heart of our Plan for Change to cut the unfair link between background and success. 'We believe that background shouldn't mean destiny. Today's historic step will help us to deliver excellence everywhere, for every child and give more young people the chance to get on in life.' The Government's child poverty taskforce is due to publish its 10-year strategy later this year. Nick Harrison, chief executive of the Sutton Trust social mobility charity, said: 'This is a significant step towards taking hunger out of the classroom. 'Children can't learn effectively when hungry, so this announcement not only helps to tackle the effects of child poverty, but will also likely help improve education outcomes for disadvantaged young people. 'Giving free school meals to all families who are eligible for universal credit is also easier for parents to understand, so has the potential to increase take-up rates.' Kate Anstey, head of education policy at the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) charity, said: 'This is fantastic news and a game-changer for children and families. 'At last, more kids will get the food they need to learn and thrive and millions of parents struggling to make ends meet will get a bit of breathing space. 'We hope this is a sign of what's to come in autumn's child poverty strategy, with government taking more action to meet its manifesto commitment to reduce child poverty in the UK.' Pepe Di'Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: 'There's some detail to be worked through on exactly how this transition will work and we look forward to talking with the Government about that. 'But, certainly, expanding free school meal eligibility in this way is absolutely the right thing to do.' Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), said: 'We join families and schools across England in welcoming this necessary and overdue first step in expanding free school meals eligibility. 'The existing threshold had been unchanged since 2018, meaning hundreds of thousands of children in poverty were missing out on the nutrition they need to thrive.' But he added that many children in families who just miss out on being eligible for universal credit will also 'miss out on a hot, healthy school meal'. Mr Kebede said: 'Ensuring that a free school meal is available to all children is the next urgent step that must be taken.' The Liberal Democrats said the change was a 'victory for thousands of passionate campaigners' but was 'only a first step' towards helping children in poverty. The party's education spokeswoman Munira Wilson MP said: 'Liberal Democrats have been pushing hard for this crucial change for years. It's a victory for thousands of passionate campaigners that the Government has finally listened.' She added: 'To end the cost-of-learning crisis, the Government needs to commit to auto-enrolling eligible children for free school meals, lifting the two-child benefit cap, and capping uniform costs to truly change the lives of children in poverty. We'll hold their feet to the fire to make sure today's change is just a start.'
The Independent
33 minutes ago
- The Independent
Free school meals for half a million of England's poorest children
An extra half a million children will benefit from a free meal every school day after the government announced a major expansion of the policy, which they said would lift 100,000 pupils out of poverty and put an extra £500 in parents' pockets. From the start of the 2026 school year, every child whose household is on universal credit will be entitled to free school meals, the government announced on Thursday. Since 2018, children have only been eligible for free school meals if their household income is less than £7,400 per year, meaning hundreds of thousands of children living in poverty have been unable to access them. As of January last year, nearly 2.1 million children in England were eligible for free school meals. The Department for Education claimed that the expansion will lift 100,000 children across England out of poverty. It comes two years after The Independent 's Feed the Future campaign, in which we called for free school meals to be extended to all schoolchildren in England – both primary and secondary – who lived in households on universal credit but missed out on free school meals. The latest move will be seen as a major concession to Labour MPs who are concerned about the direction of the government, with rebellion brewing over the party's upcoming welfare cuts and calls for Sir Keir Starmer to scrap the two-child benefit cap. The chancellor Rachel Reeves also announced on Wednesday that more people will get fuel payments 'this winter' as she pledged to raise the level of the means test. Announcing the expansion of free school meals, education secretary Bridget Phillipson said 'background shouldn't mean destiny', adding: 'Today's historic step will help us to deliver excellence everywhere, for every child and give more young people the chance to get on in life.' She continued: 'It is the moral mission of this government to tackle the stain of child poverty, and today this government takes a giant step towards ending it with targeted support that puts money back in parents' pockets.' The move was welcomed by campaigners and unions, with the Child Poverty Action Group saying it will be a 'game-changer for children and families'. Kate Anstey, head of education policy the campaign group, said: 'At last more kids will get the food they need to learn and thrive and millions of parents struggling to make ends meet will get a bit of breathing space. 'We hope this is a sign of what's to come in autumn's child poverty strategy, with the government taking more action to meet its manifesto commitment to reduce child poverty in the UK." Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said the expansion of free school meals eligibility was a 'necessary and overdue first step' that would help address child hunger in schools. He said the current threshold, which had been unchanged since 2018, meant 'hundreds of thousands of children in poverty were missing out on the nutrition they need to thrive'. Mr Kebede added: 'As teachers, our members know the positive impact of children eating and learning together – how it breaks down stigma and inequality, and ensures greater community cohesion. Ensuring that a free school meal is available to all children is the next urgent step that must be taken.' Meanwhile, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, welcomed the move to expand free school meals to all families on universal credit, saying 'no child should ever have to go hungry due to their parents' financial circumstances'. But he also called for auto-enrolment and wider support to tackle the broader impact of poverty on children's education. Children's commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza echoed his call, urging the government to make sure every eligible child is 'automatically enrolled for free school meals, rather than putting the onus on parents to sign up'. 'When children talk to me about their family lives, I am struck by how acutely aware they are of their parents' worries and of the impact these have on their daily lives - and their education', she said. 'That's why we need solutions that reflect children's experiences, reduce the shame too many have told me they feel about their circumstances, and break the link between their backgrounds and their opportunities, by giving them communities that are safe, supportive and aspirational.' Last week, The Independent revealed that demand for help from baby banks from parents struggling to feed their children has surged by more than one-third in a year, amid record -high levels of child poverty. New data showed that more than 3.5 million essential items were handed out in 2024, including nappies, clothes and cots – an increase of 143 per cent on the previous year. The announcement came just hours after Sir Keir sidestepped questions over the two-child benefit cap, amid growing calls for him to lift the limit. Critics of the policy say removing it would be the most effective way of tackling child poverty amid warnings that as many as 100 children are pulled into poverty every day by the limit. However, it is thought the cap will not be lifted until the government publishes its child poverty strategy, which has now been delayed until the autumn. Grilled on the policy at Prime Minister's Questions, Sir Keir said he is 'absolutely determined' to 'drive down' child poverty but declined to give further details ahead of the publication of the government's strategy.
North Wales Chronicle
35 minutes ago
- North Wales Chronicle
All pupils in families on universal credit to be entitled to free school meals
Hundreds of thousands more children across the country will be able to access means-tested free school meals when the provision is extended from September 2026, the Department for Education (DfE) has said. Currently, households in England on universal credit must earn below £7,400 a year (after tax and not including benefits) to qualify for free school meals. But the Government has announced that every pupil whose household is on universal credit will have a new entitlement to free school lunches from the start of the 2026/27 academic year. The move comes after campaigners and education leaders have called for free school meals to be extended to all children whose families are on universal credit to ease pressures on young people living in poverty. Nearly 2.1 million pupils – almost one in four of all pupils (24.6%) – in England were eligible for free school meals in January 2024. The DfE has said more than half-a-million more children are expected to benefit from a free meal every school day as a result of the expansion, and nearly £500 will be put back into parents' pockets every year. It suggested that the expansion will lift 100,000 children across England completely out of poverty. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: 'Feeding more children every day, for free, is one of the biggest interventions we can make to put more money in parents' pockets, tackle the stain of poverty, and set children up to learn. 'This expansion is a truly historic moment for our country, helping families who need it most and delivering our Plan for Change to give every child, no matter their background, the same chance to succeed.' The DfE is due to release data on Thursday morning showing the number of state school pupils in England who are eligible for free school meals. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: 'It is the moral mission of this government to tackle the stain of child poverty, and today this government takes a giant step towards ending it with targeted support that puts money back in parents' pockets. 'From free school meals to free breakfast clubs, breaking the cycle of child poverty is at the heart of our Plan for Change to cut the unfair link between background and success. 'We believe that background shouldn't mean destiny. Today's historic step will help us to deliver excellence everywhere, for every child and give more young people the chance to get on in life.' The Government's child poverty taskforce is due to publish its 10-year strategy later this year. Nick Harrison, chief executive of the Sutton Trust social mobility charity, said: 'This is a significant step towards taking hunger out of the classroom. 'Children can't learn effectively when hungry, so this announcement not only helps to tackle the effects of child poverty, but will also likely help improve education outcomes for disadvantaged young people. 'Giving free school meals to all families who are eligible for universal credit is also easier for parents to understand, so has the potential to increase take-up rates.' Kate Anstey, head of education policy at the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) charity, said: 'This is fantastic news and a game-changer for children and families. 'At last, more kids will get the food they need to learn and thrive and millions of parents struggling to make ends meet will get a bit of breathing space. 'We hope this is a sign of what's to come in autumn's child poverty strategy, with government taking more action to meet its manifesto commitment to reduce child poverty in the UK.' Pepe Di'Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), said: 'There's some detail to be worked through on exactly how this transition will work and we look forward to talking with the Government about that. 'But, certainly, expanding free school meal eligibility in this way is absolutely the right thing to do.' Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), said: 'We join families and schools across England in welcoming this necessary and overdue first step in expanding free school meals eligibility. 'The existing threshold had been unchanged since 2018, meaning hundreds of thousands of children in poverty were missing out on the nutrition they need to thrive.' But he added that many children in families who just miss out on being eligible for universal credit will also 'miss out on a hot, healthy school meal'. Mr Kebede said: 'Ensuring that a free school meal is available to all children is the next urgent step that must be taken.' The Liberal Democrats said the change was a 'victory for thousands of passionate campaigners' but was 'only a first step' towards helping children in poverty. The party's education spokeswoman Munira Wilson MP said: 'Liberal Democrats have been pushing hard for this crucial change for years. It's a victory for thousands of passionate campaigners that the Government has finally listened.' She added: 'To end the cost-of-learning crisis, the Government needs to commit to auto-enrolling eligible children for free school meals, lifting the two-child benefit cap, and capping uniform costs to truly change the lives of children in poverty. We'll hold their feet to the fire to make sure today's change is just a start.'
