§ Mr. Lipsonasked the President of the Board of Education how many children are receiving dinners in elementary and secondary schools, respectively; and what percentages these represent of the school population?
§ Mr. ButlerAccording to a census taken on a day in the early part of October, for which almost complete returns have now been received, the number of children having dinner at school in England and Wales was approximately 653,000 in elementary schools and 205,000 in secondary schools; that is 16.6 per cent. and 41.8 per cent. respectively of the children present in school on the day of the return.
§ Mr. Malcolm MacMillanasked the Secretary of State for Scotland how many schools there are in the county of Ross-shire, including the Isle of Lewis; in how many of these schools prepared hot meals are being provided daily; what percentage of the total of the children is thus served; and how the progress in the county in this direction compares with that of Scotland as a whole?
Mr. JohnstonThere are 132 schools in Ross and Cromarty, including the Isle of Lewis, the great majority of which are one, two or three-teacher schools in sparsely populated areas for which hot meals are difficult to arrange. In two schools hot dinners are provided daily. The percentage of children in the county who were receiving such meals at school in October, 1942, was 2.3, compared with 13.4 for the whole of Scotland. Proposals are at present under consideration 899W to supply hot dinners at another two schools for a further 2 per cent. of the total school population. In addition substantial uncooked lunches, which have been devised by arrangement with the Ministry of Food to meet the needs of rural areas, are provided at seven schools for 2.1 per cent. of the school children in the county while in 25 schools, 8.5 per cent. of the children are being supplied with hot drinks, such as cocoa.