HC Deb 05 July 1971 vol 820 cc299-312W
Mr. Maude

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science whether the results of the May census of school dinners are now available; and how they compare with those of the census carried out in September last year.

Mrs. Thatcher

In May 4,161,000, or 53.8 per cent., of pupils present at maintained schools in England and Wales took the school dinner compared with 5,148,000, or 67.9 per cent. in September, 1970. Free dinners served in May numbered 763,000, or 18.3 per cent. of the total, compared with 627,000, or 12.2 per cent. of the total, last September. A detailed statement of the returns from local education authorities on which these figures are based is given below. This statement, with the agreement of my right hon. and learned Friend the Secretary of State for Wales, includes returns from Welsh authorities.

It should not be assumed that the drop in take-up is wholly attributable to the recent increase in price. I understand that a significant fall off had already occurred in some areas between September last year and March this year, before the new charge and remission arrangements came into force. This may be due at least in part to the introduction by an increasing number of local education authorities of meals of a different type as an alternative to the traditional school dinner in some of their secondary schools. Meals of this kind are proving popular with the pupils, but they are not regarded as school dinners for the purpose of the returns made by the authorities, and they are not therefore included in any of the figures given in this answer. Apart from this, demand normally falls in the summer for a number of reasons unconnected with price.

Even allowing for these factors the demand for paid dinners shows a significant drop, as expected. Past experience, however, indicates that while demand falls after a price rise, it tends to recover as parents realise that the school dinner, which still carries a substantial subsidy from public funds, is very good value even at its new price. The normal annual census to be carried out in the autumn should provide a better indication of the likely longer-term effect on take-up of the recent change in price and improvement in the remission scale for free dinners.

The May increase of 21.7 per cent. over September in the number of free dinners taken up is a welcome indication that parents becoming entitled to this benefit for the first time are prepared to claim it on behalf of their children. By the autumn an even more generous remission scale will be in operation consequent upon the increase in social benefit levels which become effective in September, thus bringing more families into entitlement; and, as I have already announced to the House, there will also be automatic entitlement to free school dinners for the children of recipients of the new Family Income Supplements payable from next month.

Following is the detailed statement:

Day pupils taking midday meals Per cent. of pupils present Free meals as per cent. of total meals served
May, 1971 September, 1970 On payment Free Total
Local Education Authority On Payment Free Total On Payment Free Total May 1971 Autumn, 1970 May 1971 Autumn 1970 May, 1971 Autumn, 1970 May, 1971 Autumn 1970
Bedfordshire … … 25,845 2,549 28,394 32,712 2,167 34,879 52.4 69.0 5.2 4.6 57.6 73.6 9.0 6.2
Berkshire … … 45,667 3,845 49,512 56,733 3,045 59,778 52.2 68.4 4.4 3.7 56.6 72.1 7.8 5.1
Buckinghamshire … 55,608 4,050 59,658 68,323 3,083 71,406 54.9 70.5 4.0 3.2 58.9 73.7 6.8 4.3
Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely … … 22,301 3,014 25,315 27,916 2,391 30,307 49.8 64.1 6.7 5.5 56.6 69.6 11.9 7.9
Cheshire … … 87,417 13,747 101,164 115,846 10,651 126,497 49.0 67.3 7.7 6.2 56.7 73.5 13.6 8.4
Cornwall … … 24',965 7,877 32,842 33,136 5,634 38770 46.0 64.2 14.5 10.9 60.6 75.2 24.0 14.5
Cumberland … … 24,701 4,975 29,676 28,542 3,932 32,474 64.6 78.2 13.0 10.8 77.6 89.0 16.8 12.1
Derbyshire … … 50,995 8,076 59,071 66,805 6,636 73,441 48.2 64.7 7.6 6.4 55.9 71.2 13.7 9.0
Devon … … 28,990 9,581 38,571 37,705 6,265 43,970 48.9 66.7 16.2 11.1 65.0 77.8 243.8 14.3
Dorset … … 22,483 5,307 27,790 32,739 3,655 36,394 42.9 64.9 10.1 7.2 53.0 72.2 19.1 10.0
Durham … … 53,347 19,405 72,752 76,205 17,512 93,717 38.2 55.6 13.9 12.8 52.1 68.3 26.7 18.7
Essex … … 81,206 10,934 92,140 115,942 8,760 124,702 41.9 61.4 5.6 4.6 47.5 66.0 11.9 7.0
Gloucestershire … … 47,391 6,912 54,303 62,075 5,972 68,047 50.5 67.5 7.4 6.5 57.8 73.9 12.7 8.8
Hampshire … … 79,900 11,235 91,135 108,298 8,994 117,292 47.2 68.9 6.6 5.7 53.9 74.6 12.3 7.7
Herefordshire … … 14,395 2,677 17,072 16,665 2,079 18,744 64.2 76.9 11.9 9.6 76.1 86.5 15.7 11.1
Hertfordshire … … 92,045 8,921 100,966 113,756 5,905 119,661 57.2 72.7 5.6 3.8 62.8 76.5 8.8 4.9
Huntingdon and Peterborough 18,326 2,728 21,054 23,642 2,040 25,682 50.5 66.9 7.5 5.8 58.1 72.7 13.0 7.9
Isle of Wight … … 5,979 1,600 7,579 8,754 1,033 9,787 39.6 61.3 10.6 7.2 50.3 68.5 21.1 10.6
Kent … … 109,169 17,281 126,450 139,216 12,927 152,143 51.8 68.0 8.2 6.3 60.0 74.3 13.7 8.5
Lancashire … … 189,535 39,447 228,982 259,556 30,695 290,251 46.6 65.3 9.7 7.7 56.3 73.0 17.2 10.6
Lincolnshire … … 40,086 3,225 43,311 51,019 2,428 53,447 55.9 65.8 4.5 3.1 60.4 69.50 73.5 4.5
Leicestershire—
Holland … … 6,665 1,470 8,135 8,839 1,065 9,904 40.5 55.50 8.9 6.6 49.4 61.6 18.51 10.58
Kesteven … … 12,774 1,807 14,581 16,002 1,278 17,280 49.8 65.3 7.50 5.2 56.8 70.5 12.4 73.4
Lindsey … … 35,644 6,802 42,446 43,864 4,711 48,575 53.1 67.9 10.1 7.3 63.3 75.2 16.0 9.7
Norfolk … … 33,878 6,204 40,082 45,283 4,458 49,741 51.9 72.2 9.5 7.1 61.4 79.3 15.5 9.0
Northamptonshire … 22,229 3,400 25,629 29,634 2,597 32,231 40.3 55.6 6.2 4.9 46.5 60.5 13.3 8.1
Northumberland … 39,306 11,231 50,537 52,843 9,581 62,424 48.2 65.5 13.8 11.9 62.0 77.4 22.2 15.4
Nottinghamshire … 54,938 7,296 62,234 67,279 5,661 72,940 51.4 63.3 6.8 5.3 58.3 68.6 11.7 7.8
Oxfordshire … … 21,623 2,445 24,068 25,982 1,778 27,760 49.0 62.5 5.5 4.3 54.5 66.8 10.2 6.4
Rutland … … 2,198 90 2,288 2,804 70 2,874 48.3 63.9 2.0 1.6 50.3 65.5 3.9 2.4
Shropshire (Salop) … 30,092 5,113 35,205 38,136 4,680 42,816 56.0 72.5 9.5 8.9 65.5 81.4 14.5 10.9
Somerset … … 45,891 7,739 53,630 61,028 6,041 67,069 52.3 70.5 8.8 7.0 61.1 77.5 14.4 9.0
Staffordshire … … 54,053 8,618 62,671 72,029 7,368 79,397 44.9 61.3 7.2 6.3 52.0 67.6 13.8 9.3
Suffolk, East … … 17,246 2,742 19,988 21,737 2,099 23,836 48.7 63.2 7.7 6.1 56.5 69.2 13.7 8.8
Suffolk, West … … 10,934 1,878 12,812 15,489 1,220 16,709 43.6 64.7 7.5 53.1 51.0 69.8 14.7 7.3
Surrey … … 81,278 6,191 87,469 97,814 4,960 102,774 57.4 70.6 4.4 3.6 61.8 74.2 7.1 4.8

Day pupils taking midday meals Per cent. of pupils present Free meals as per cent. of total meals served
May, 1971 September, 1970 On payment Free Total
Local Education Authority On Payment Free Total On Payment Free Total May, 1971 Autumn, 1970 May 1971 Autumn 1970 May, 1971 Autumn, 1970 May, 1971 Autumn 1970
Sussex, East … … 27,672 4,725 32,397 36,527 3,521 40,048 50.3 68.2 8.6 6.6 58.9 74.8 14.6 8.8
Sussex, West … … 34,592 5,885 40,477 46,569 3,720 50,289 49.1 68.2 8.4 5.4 57.5 73.6 14.5 7.4
Warwickshire … … 55,442 7,327 62,769 66,544 6,104 72,648 52.3 69.3 6.9 6.4 59.2 75.7 11.7 8.4
Westmorland … … 8,023 707 8,730 8,862 610 9,472 75.2 87.6 6.6 6.0 81.8 93.6 8.1 6.4
Wiltshire … … 34,529 5,606 40,135 46,424 4,614 51,038 41.6 58.1 6.8 5.8 48.3 63.9 14.0 9.0
Worcestershire … … 38,800 3,735 42,535 47,081 2,660 49,741 56.5 72.8 5.4 4.1 61.9 76.9 8.8 5.4
Yorkshire—
East Riding … … 18,676 3,009 21,685 23,758 2,058 25,816 45.9 63.3 7.4 5.5 53.3 68.8 13.9 8.0
North Riding … 28,254 5,447 33,701 33,181 4,543 37,724 58.1 71.9 11.2 9.8 69.3 81.8 16.2 12.0
West Riding … … 139,388 31,276 170,664 185,611 24,805 210,416 46.8 63.9 10.5 8.5 57.3 72.5 18.3 11.8
Barnsley … … 4,531 1,801 6,332 6,697 1,671 8,368 34.0 49.5 13.5 12.3 47.6 61.8 28.4 20.0
Barrow-in-Furness … 2,839 1,035 3,874 3,944 845 4,789 25.8 37.5 9.4 8.0 35.3 45.5 26.7 17.6
Bath … … 5,437 1,175 6,612 7,483 1,018 8,501 46.0 64.2 9.9 8.7 55.9 72.9 17.8 12.0
Birkenhead … … 8,224 3,358 11,582 12,025 2,801 14,826 37.3 53.5 15.2 12.4 52.6 65.9 29.0 18.9
Birmingham … … 62,264 20,001 82,265 85,844 16,096 101,940 35.4 50.1 11.4 9.4 46.7 59.4 24.3 15.8
Blackburn … … 6,365 2,014 8,379 10,220 1,387 11,607 41.5 63.1 13.2 8.6 54.7 71.6 24.0 12.0
Blackpool … … 9,744 2,855 12,599 12,685 2,108 14,793 49.4 66.4 14.5 11.0 63.9 77.4 22.7 14.3
Bolton … … 12,150 3,392 15,542 15,229 2,688 17,917 47.6 60.9 13.3 10.7 60.9 71.6 21.8 15.0
Bootle … … 3,176 1,857 5,033 5,639 1,506 7,145 21.5 38.6 12.6 10.3 34.1 48.9 36.9 21.1
Bournemouth … … 7,817 2,158 9,975 10,800 1,504 12,304 44.5 63.5 12.3 8.8 56.8 72.4 21.6 12.2
Bradford … … 15,272 8,181 23,453 22,430 6,801 29,231 29.7 44.7 15.9 13.5 45.6 58.2 34.9 23.3
Brighton … … 9,802 3,203 13,005 12,164 2,440 14,604 46.2 58.4 15.1 11.7 61.3 70.1 24.6 16.7
Bristol … … 24,980 6,701 31,681 32,482 5,422 37,904 38.8 51.5 10.4 8.6 49.2 60.1 21.2 14.3
Burnley … … 5,226 1,756 6,982 8,043 1,444 9,487 37.6 58.4 12.6 10.5 50.2 68.9 25.2 15.2
Burton-upon-Trent … 2,616 751 3,367 3,537 633 4,170 25.4 35.7 7.3 6.4 32.7 42.1 22.3 15.2
Bury … … 4,068 1,139 5,207 5,706 790 6,496 39.2 56.8 11.0 7.9 50.2 64.6 21.9 12.2
Canterbury … … 3,882 754 4,636 4,958 582 5,540 58.2 74.6 11.3 8.8 69.5 83.3 16.3 10.5
Carlisle … … 4,643 1,503 6,146 6,702 1,393 8,095 37.4 52.5 12.1 10.9 49.5 63.5 24.5 17.2
Chester … … 4,543 1,057 5,600 6,820 849 7,669 39.9 62.5 9.3 7.8 49.2 70.3 18.9 11.1
Coventry … … 27,402 4,760 32,162 34,679 4,351 39,030 46.7 59.5 8.1 7.5 54.8 66.9 14.8 11.2
Darlington … … 6,275 1,923 8,198 7,822 1,634 9,456 41.5 53.0 12.7 11.1 54.2 64.1 23.5 17.3
Derby … … 14,064 3,149 17,213 18,633 2,531 21,164 39.1 53.0 8.8 7.2 47.9 60.1 18.3 12.0
Dewsbury … … 3,187 1,489 4,676 4,710 1,182 5,892 34.0 51.7 15.9 13.0 49.9 64.6 31.8 20.1
Doncaster … … 6,721 1,486 8,207 8,635 1,221 9,856 44.5 52.4 9.8 7.4 54.3 59.8 18.1 12.4
Dudley … … 8,562 1,309 9,871 11,803 1,094 12,897 30.2 41.8 4.6 3.9 34.8 45.6 13.3 8.5
Eastbourne … … 3,680 799 4,479 4,845 570 5,415 45.8 68.4 9.9 8.0 55.7 76.4 17.8 10.5
Exeter … … 4,938 1,988 6,926 6,571 1,413 7,934 380 50.8 15.3 10.9 53.3 61.8 28.7 17.7
Gateshead … … 3,873 3,067 6,940 5,326 2,525 7,851 25.8 36.2 20.5 17.1 46.3 53.3 44.2 32.2
Gloucester … … 7,367 1,690 9,057 10,062 1,421 11,483 43.2 59.0 9.9 8.3 53.1 67.3 18.7 12.4

Day pupils taking midday meals Per cent. of pupils present Free meals as per cent. of total meals served
May, 1971 September, 1970 On payment Free Total
Local Education Authority On Payment Free Total On Payment Free Total May, 1971 Autumn, 1970 May 1971 Autumn 1970 May, 1971 Autumn, 1970 May, 1971 Autumn 1970
Great Yarmouth … 2,627 1,014 3,641 3,982 784 4,766 28.9 47.5 11.2 9.4 40.1 56.9 27.9 16.5
Grimsby … … 7,450 1,806 9,256 9,564 1,273 10,837 44.5 54.3 10.8 7.2 55.2 61.5 19.5 11.8
Halifax … … 8,060 2,496 10,556 10,311 2,062 12,373 52.8 68.1 16.4 13.6 69.2 81.7 23.7 16.7
Hartlepool … … 5,314 2,435 7,749 6,889 2,024 8,913 27.5 37.4 12.6 11.0 40.1 48.4 31.4 22.7
Hastings … … 3,997 1,391 5,388 5,453 947 6,400 43.7 59.5 15.2 10.3 58.9 69.9 25.8 14.8
Huddersfield … … 12,107 2,416 14,523 14,387 1,920 16,307 54.0 69.0 10.8 9.2 64.7 78.2 16.6 11.8
Ipswich … … 5,692 1,528 7,220 7,572 1,258 8,830 28.6 37.9 7.7 6.3 36.2 44.2 21.2 14.3
Kingston upon Hull … … 9,675 6,688 16,363 15,736 5,814 21,550 19.2 31.5 13.3 11.6 32.5 43.1 40.9 27.0
Leeds … … 37,580 10,896 48,476 46,952 9,507 56,459 47.3 57.9 13.7 11.7 61.0 69.6 22.5 16.8
Leicester … … 18,469 3,476 21,945 21,067 3,371 24,438 37.9 44.8 7.1 7.2 45.1 52.0 15.8 13.8
Lincoln … … 5,543 1,585 7,128 7,400 1,251 8,651 43.4 59.6 12.4 10.1 55.9 69.7 22.2 14.5
Liverpool … … 28,922 13,794 42,716 45,088 13,582 58,670 27.1 41.6 12.9 12.5 40.0 54.2 32.3 23.2
Luton … … 13,520 2,257 15,777 17,915 1,718 19,633 45.1 62.4 7.5 6.0 52.6 68.4 14.3 8.8
Manchester … … 35,870 21,100 56,970 49,931 17,723 67,654 37.7 53.4 22.2 19.0 59.8 72.4 37.0 26.2
Newcastle upon Tyn … 10,361 9,240 19,601 14,497 7,841 22,338 30.4 43.2 27.1 23.4 57.4 66.5 47.1 35.1
Northampton … … 7,026 1,183 8,209 9,111 954 10,065 33.1 45.0 5.6 4.7 38.7 49.7 14.4 9.5
Norwich … … 5,819 2,379 8,198 9,086 1,953 11,039 32.6 49.7 13.3 10.7 45.9 60.4 29.0 17.7
Nottingham … … 12,921 7,386 20,307 17,011 6,304 23,315 25.1 33.6 14.4 12.4 39.5 46.0 36.4 27.0
Oldham … … 5,866 3,355 9,221 8,012 2,479 10,491 33.0 46.3 18.9 14.3 51.8 60.7 36.4 23.6
Oxford … … 7,707 1,568 9,275 9,691 1,229 10,920 46.5 59.9 9.5 7.6 55.9 67.5 16.9 11.3
Plymouth … … 13,840 4,500 18,340 18,774 4,068 22,842 34.1 48.9 11.1 10.6 45.2 59.4 24.5 17.8
Portsmouth … … 7,532 3,759 11,291 10,561 3,069 13,630 25.1 38.4 12.5 11.2 37.6 49.6 33.3 22.5
Preston … … 6,789 3,144 9,933 9,234 2,918 12,152 39.7 53.9 18.4 17.0 58.0 70.9 31.7 24.0
Reading … … 10,113 2,365 12,478 12,648 2,051 14,699 47.2 60.0 11.0 9.7 58.2 69.8 19.0 14.0
Rochdale … … 6,751 2,230 8,981 8,931 1,688 10,619 42.5 54.8 14.0 10.4 56.5 65.2 24.8 15.9
Rotherham … … 6,150 1,560 7,710 8,747 1,218 9,965 41.0 59.2 10.4 8.2 51.4 67.5 20.2 12.2
St. Helens … … 6,244 2,035 8,279 9,581 1,491 11,072 35.6 54.7 11.6 8.5 47.2 63.2 24.6 13.5
Salford … … 7,073 4,301 11,374 10,107 3,701 13,808 31.2 43.9 19.0 16.1 50.2 60.0 37.8 26.8
Sheffield … … 27,555 7,753 35,308 39,668 6,924 46,592 33.6 45.6 9.5 8.0 43.1 53.5 22.0 14.9
Solihull … … 10,640 563 11,203 13,204 469 13,673 57.5 75.2 3.0 2.7 60.6 77.9 5.0 3.4
Southampton … … 13,024 3,395 16,419 18,361 2,868 21,229 36.5 52.5 9.5 8.2 46.0 60.7 20.7 13.5
Southend-on-Sea … 9,420 2,078 11,498 12,906 1,846 14,752 39.7 55.1 8.8 7.9 48.5 63.0 18.1 12.5
Southport … … 4,768 1,340 6,108 7,201 1,113 8,314 39.6 59.9 11.1 9.3 50.8 69.2 21.9 13.4
South Shields … … 2,355 2,309 4,664 3,721 1,708 5,429 13.5 21.6 13.2 9.9 26.7 31.6 49.5 31.5
Stockport … … 9,026 2,650 11,676 12,866 2,265 15,131 40.1 57.9 11.8 10.2 51.9 68.1 22.7 15.0
Stoke-on-Trent … 18,602 4,985 23,587 24,336 5,212 29,543 42.3 55.0 11.3 11.8 53.6 66.8 21.1 17.6
Sunderland … … 7,765 6,044 13,809 11,162 5,634 16,796 19.3 27.9 15.0 14.1 34.3 41.9 43.8 33.5
Teesside … … 35,138 11,767 46,905 46,339 9,220 55,559 43.2 58.1 14.5 11.6 57.6 69.7 25.1 16.6
Torbay … … 6,103 2,271 8,374 8,100 1,574 9,674 46.8 65.0 17.4 12.6 64.2 77.6 27.1 16.3

Day pupils taking midday meals Per cent. of pupils present Free meals as per cent. of total meals served
May, 1971 September, 1970 On payment Free Total
Local Education Authority On Payment Free Total On Payment Free Total May, 1971 Autumn, 1970 May 1971 Autumn 1970 May, 1971 Autumn, 1970 May, 1971 Autumn 1970
Tynemouth … … 3,403 1,863 5,266 5,041 1,459 6,500 26.8 41.0 14.7 11.9 41.5 53.0 35.4 22.5
Wakefield … … 3,717 1,159 4,876 5,717 1,024 6,741 41.1 60.4 12.8 10.8 53.9 71.2 23.8 15.2
Wallasey … … 4,330 1,914 6,244 7,740 1,473 9,213 26.3 48.0 11.6 9.1 37.9 57.2 30.7 16.0
Walsall … … 10,676 2,847 13,523 13,619 2,368 15,987 32.9 44.4 8.8 7.7 41.7 52.1 21.1 14.8
Warley … … 7,869 2,296 10,165 11,723 1,876 13,599 31.2 47.3 9.1 7.6 40.3 54.8 22.6 13.8
Warrington … … 4,060 1,300 5,360 6,966 1,143 8,109 33.9 55.8 10.9 9.2 44.7 65.0 24.3 14.1
West Brom wich … 8,092 2,477 10,569 11,597 2,211 13,808 28.5 41.8 8.7 8.0 37.2 49.7 23.4 16.0
Wigan … … 5, 024 1,659 6,683 7,329 1,491 8,820 38.4 56.0 12.7 11.4 51.1 67.4 24.8 16.9
Wolverhampton … 18,942 4,050 22,992 24,272 3,090 27,362 40.0 53.7 8.6 6.8 48.5 60.5 17.6 11.3
Worcester … … 6,136 898 7,034 7,784 761 8,545 48.2 64.1 7.1 6.3 55.3 70.3 12.8 8.9
York … … 4,723 1,854 6,577 7,240 1,585 8,825 26.6 41.7 10.4 9.1 37.0 50.8 28.2 18.0
Barking … … 6,777 2,133 8,910 11,079 1,903 12,982 27.6 43.4 8.7 7.5 36.2 50.8 23.9 14.7
Barnet … … 23,031 2,414 25,445 28,443 2,050 30,493 54.9 70.9 5.8 5.1 60.6 76.0 9.5 6.7
Bexley … … 17,686 1,317 19,003 21,577 1,033 22,610 53.7 65.8 4.0 3.1 57.8 68.9 6.9 4.6
Brent … … 19,328 3,259 22,587 24,314 2,978 27,292 49.3 63.2 8.3 7.7 57.6 70.9 14.4 10.9
Bromley … … 25,795 2,264 28,059 32,453 1,841 34,294 58.1 74.7 5.1 4.2 63.2 79.0 8.1 5.4
Croydon … … 20,354 3,712 24,066 29,375 3,259 32,634 39.9 57.9 7.3 6.4 47.2 64.3 15.4 10.0
Ealing … … 21,474 3,817 25,291 27,164 3,194 30,358 52.3 66.0 9.3 7.8 61.6 73.7 15.1 10.5
Enfield … … 18,717 1,943 20,660 23,841 1,531 25,372 48.6 64.3 5.1 4.1 53.7 68.4 9.4 6.0
Haringey … … 15,949 3,210 19,159 19,933 2,936 22,869 46.7 58.5 9.4 8.6 56.1 67.1 16.8 12.8
Harrow … … 14,482 1,167 15,649 19,962 963 20,925 501 72.4 4.0 33.5 54.1 75.9 7.5 4.7
Havering … … 17,697 1,614 19,311 24,937 1,373 26,310 43.6 60.0 4.0 3.3 47.6 63.3 8.4 5.2
Hillingdon … … 19,915 1,534 21,449 25,828 1,281 27,109 54.9 70.1 4.2 3.5 59.1 73.6 7.2 4.7
Hounslow … … 14,244 1,776 16,020 18,603 1,631 20,234 47.7 62.6 5.9 5.5 53.6 68.0 11.1 8.1
Kingston upon Thames 10,109 937 11,046 13,534 773 14,307 54.1 71.0 5.0 4.1 59.1 75.0 8.5 5.4
Merton … … 10,919 1,447 12,366 15,536 1,294 16,830 46.7 67.6 6.2 5.6 52.9 73.2 11.7 7.7
Newham … … 11,159 2,383 13,542 16,310 1,900 18,210 30.3 47.1 6.5 5.5 36.7 52.6 17.6 10.4
Redbridge … … 14,459 1,413 15,872 18,967 1,097 20,064 44.7 60.7 4.4 3.5 49.0 64.2 8.9 5.5
Richmond upon Thames 11,090 1,085 12,175 14,613 961 15,574 54.6 74.8 5.3 4.9 60.0 79.8 8.9 6.2
Sutton … … 11,567 1,105 12,672 15,427 919 16,346 52.4 71.3 5.0 4.2 57.4 75.5 8.7 5.6
Waltham Forest … 11,916 2,131 14,047 15,452 1,801 17,253 37.1 49.3 6.6 5.8 43.7 55.1 15.2 10.4
London … … 140,648 61,324 201,972 196,098 57,825 253,923 37.8 50.7 16.5 14.9 54.2 65.6 30.4 22.8

Day pupils taking midday meals Per cent. of pupils present Free meals as per cent. of total meals served
May, 1971 September, 1970 On payment Free Total
Local Education Authority On Payment Free Total On Payment Free Total May, 1971 Autumn, 1970 May 1971 Autumn 1970 May, 1971 Autumn, 1970 May, 1971 Autumn 1970
Anglesey … … 4,993 1,789 6,782 6,803 1,589 8,392 48.7 65.9 17.5 15.4 66.2 81.3 26.4 18.9
Breconshire … … 4,121 1,367 5,488 5,508 988 6,496 46.3 62.4 15.4 11.2 61.6 73.6 24.9 15.2
Caernarvonshire … 8,160 4,594 12,754 11,416 3,602 15,018 44.8 63.4 25.2 20.0 70.1 83.5 36.0 24.0
Cardiganshire … … 5,088 1,325 6,413 6,397 1,011 7,408 55.7 70.5 14.5 11.1 70.2 81.7 20.7 13.6
Carmarthenshire … 12,291 2,879 15,170 16,826 2,521 19,347 48.6 67.8 11.4 10.2 60.0 77.9 19.0 13.0
Denbighshire … … 11,670 4,155 15,825 17,407 3,417 20,824 39.5 59.8 14.1 11.7 53.5 71.5 26.3 16.4
Flintshire … … 8,548 2,412 10,960 16,536 1,974 18,510 28.8 54.7 8.1 6.5 36.9 61.2 22.0 10.7
Glamorgan … … 40,114 13,608 53,722 60,458 11,306 71,764 32.3 48.4 11.0 9.1 43.3 57.5 25.3 15.8
Merioneth … … 3,054 964 4,018 3,843 687 4,530 52.9 67.3 16.7 12.0 69.6 79.3 24.0 15.2
Monmouthshire … 16,795 5,502 22,299 28,028 4,638 32,666 27.7 45.6 9.1 7.5 36.8 53.1 24.7 14.2
Montgomeryshire … 4,897 629 5,526 5,726 453 6,179 66.5 79.9 8.6 6.3 75.1 86.2 11.4 7.3
Pembrokeshire … … 6,503 2,927 9,430 9,941 2,192 12,133 37.5 57.3 16.9 12.6 54.4 69.9 31.0 18.1
Radnorshire … … 1,771 372 2,143 2,227 228 2,455 58.5 74.7 12.3 7.7 70.8 82.4 17.4 9.3
Cardiff … … 10,682 6,923 17,605 16,192 6,089 22,281 22.4 34.5 14.5 13.0 37.0 47.5 39.3 27.3
Merthyr Tydfil … 2,047 1,330 3,377 3,146 1,376 4,522 22.0 34.4 14.3 15.0 36.3 49.4 39.4 30.4
Newport (Mon.) … 4,652 2,085 6,737 6,935 1,679 8,614 23.3 33.8 10.4 8.2 33.7 41.9 31.0 19.5
Swansea … … 6,673 4,266 10,939 9,420 3,325 12,745 24.4 35.1 15.6 12.4 40.0 47.4 39.0 26.1

Dr. Stuttaford

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the percentage of children in the city of Norwich who have ceased taking school meals since the increase of prices; and how many children received school milk before the recent change of policy.

Mr. van Straubenzee

At the May, 1971, census, 8,198 or 45.9 per cent. of pupils present at maintained schools in Norwich took the school meal, compared with 11,039 or 604 per cent. at the autumn, 1970, census. Free meals served in May numbered 2,379 or 29.0 per cent. of the total served, compared with 1953 or 17.7 per cent. of the total served in the autumn.

At the autumn, 1970, census, 9,452 pupils received school milk.

Mr. Bob Brown

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science (1) what percentage of children obtain free meals in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and in Newburn Urban District, respectively; and how this compares with the national percentage for free school meals;

(2) what number and percentage of children in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and in Newburn Urban District now take free meals compared with the pre-price increase figures.

Mr. van Straubenzee

At the May, 1971, census, 27.1 per cent. of children present at maintained schools in Newcastle-upon-Tyne obtained free school meals compared with 23.4 per cent. at the autumn, 1970, census. Corresponding percentages for England and Wales as a whole were 9.9 per cent. and 8.3 per cent., respectively.

My Department does not collect information relating to parts of a local education authority's area, so I am unable to provide the information sought by the hon. Member for Newburn Urban District. He may wish to approach the local education authority direct.

Mr. Bob Brown

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what number and percentage of children have ceased to take school meals since the increase in cost in Newcastle-upon-Tyne and in Newburn Urban District.

Mr. van Straubenzee

At the May, 1971 census, 19,601 or 57.4 per cent. of pupils present at maintained schools in Newcastle-upon-Tyne took the school meal, compared with 22,338 or 66.5 per cent. at the autumn census. Free meals served in May numbered 9,240 or 47.1 per cent. of the total served, compared with 7,841 or 35.1 per cent. of the total served in the autumn.

My Department does not collecot information relating to parts of a local education authority's area and I am, therefore, unable to provide the information sought by the hon. Member for Newburn Urban District. He may wish to approach the authority direct.

Mr. Bob Brown

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what representations she has received from Newcastle upon Tyne City Council regarding withdrawal of free school milk and increase in charges for school meals; and what reply she has sent.

Mr. van Straubenzee

I am sending the hon. Member copies of the letter from Newcastle upon Tyne Education Committee and the reply.

Mr. Ford

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many children took school meals within the County Borough of Bradford for each of the last 12 months to the latest convenient date; and when price increases became effective.

Mr. van Straubenzee

My Department does not collect monthly statistics relating to school meals, but the following relates to returns collected during the 12-months period in question. At the May, 1971, census, 23,453 or 45.6 per cent. of pupils pjresent at maintained schools in Bradford took the school meal, compared with 29,231 or 58.2 per cent. at the autumn, 1970, census. Free meals served in May numbered 8,181 or 34.9 per cent. of the total served, compared with 6,801 or 23.3 per cent. of the total served in the autumn.

The price was increased from 9p to 12p from the beginning of the summer term, 1971.