HC Deb 18 July 1946 vol 425 cc1357-8
6. Mr. W. D. Griffiths

asked the Minister of Education how many schoolchildren in the city of Manchester receive meals at school; and how these numbers of children compare with the figures before and during the 1939–45 war.

Miss Wilkinson

The number of children in grant-aided primary and secondary schools in Manchester who had dinner at school on the day of the return in February last was 32,313. As the answer to the second part of the Question is long, I will, with my hon. Friend's permission, circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.

Following are the comparable figures for the war years:

October, 1941 … … 13,486
February, 1942 … … 15,120
February, 1943 … … 19,430
February, 1944 … … 27,284
February, 1945 … … 29,176

Comparable figures for prewar years are riot available, but it is estimated that, for public elementary schools only, the average daily number of children who received school dinners during the year 1938–39 was approximately 10,000.