School meals (Hansard, 10 February 1981)

§ 9. Mr. Flannery
asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science, further to his reply to the hon. Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field), Official Report, 23 January, column 246, if the October school dinners survey is now available; what the figures are; and how they compare with a year previously.

§ 23. Mr. Race
asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science, further to his reply to the hon. Member for Birkenhead (Mr. Field) on 23 January Official Report, column 246, if the October survey on school dinners is now available; and if he will make a statement.

§ Mr. Macfarlane
I refer the hon. Gentlemen to the reply given to my hon. Friend the Member for Streatham (Mr. Shelton) on 29 January.

§ Mr. Flannery
Does not the minister realise that the catastrophic drop in the uptake of school meals is bound to cause concern about the health of working-class children? Does the fact that the Minister did not intervene in the abandonment of school meals in State schools in Dorset and Lincolnshire imply that the Government want to get rid of school meals altogether? If that is not the case, will he make it clear this afternoon that he intends to take action to ensure that there is an increased uptake in school meals in State schools.

§ Mr. Macfarlane
I do not believe that the hon. Gentleman has read the press release issued by my Department shortly after I answered the question posed by my hon. Friend the Member for Streatham. There has not been a catastrophic decline in the provision of school meals. The Government believe in the importance of the school meals service. We are confident that local authorities can adapt to the changing requirements of youngsters in this day and age. It is clear that those local authorities which have adopted the principle of the cash cafeteria system have achieved an increase in take-up of meals. The trend during the past 10 or 15 years has been for a transfer from packed meals to cafeteria meals. The 17 authorities that have not yet introduced cash cafeteria systems must review their provisions.
The Education Act 1980 made it clear in section 22 that children of those in receipt of family income supplement or supplementary benefit were entitled to free school meals.

§ Mr. Race
Is the Minister saying that a fall of 1.3 million in those taking school meals is not catastrophic? What does he think about the Salvation Army soup kitchens, now operating in Lincolnshire, which feed 735 children at midday because they cannot obtain school meals because the reactionary Tory authority has abolished them?

§ Mr. Macfarlane
The hon. Gentleman's prejudice is taking hold of him and clouding his judgment. The survey undertaken by the Department of Education and Science in recent weeks acknowledged that in the summer term of 1980 there was an inevitable decline in the number of pupils staying on school premises to take either the traditional or the cash cafeteria meals. During the past 10 or 15 years—under successive Governments-—there has been a notable increase in the number of children bringing packed meals to schools. The present statistics are much the same as they were under the previous Labour Government.

§ Mr. Field
As the Minister's answer tells us that there has been a decline of about 25 per cent, in the number of children taking school dinners, and as he asserted to the House last November that he was confident that there would be no dramatic decline—his words—in the numbers taking school dinners as a result of the Government's increase in school dinner charges, would he now say what, for him, constitutes a catastrophic decline? Also—[HON. MEMBERS: "TOO long."] Also, as the increased charges hit hardest at the poorer families, will he report to the House what monitoring progress has been made by the Government on the nutritional effects of the loss of meals as a result of the increased charges?

§ Mr. Macfarlane
The hon. Gentleman asked a number of questions. I can tell him that two-thirds of local education authorities in England have adopted criteria for entitlement to free school meals that are more generous than the statutory minimum. I hope that that will encourage the hon. Gentleman. On the question of the nutritional element, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Social Services proposes to monitor the effect of the new school meal arrangements. I understand that the design of that study has yet to be finalised.
The hon. Gentleman referred to the catastrophic decline in numbers taking school meals. That is not the case. I am confident that local authorities have the capacity to monitor the effects of the changes in the school premises, and also the social services aspects. The hon. Gentleman must understand that savings must be made on the school meals service in order to preserve the core of our educational service.