SCOTY winner Raheem Morgan praises London’s free school meals expansion
Up to 287,000 state primary school children across London are now benefitting from free school meals thanks to unprecedented £135m emergency funding from the Mayor of London.
Families in every borough in the capital could save upwards of £440 per child across the next year, after the Mayor introduced the historic one-off funding to help Londoners struggling with the cost of living.
Raheem Morgan, Chartwells chef at Torridon Primary School, said: “I’m super excited to be able to serve every child a healthy, nutritious and delicious lunch for free this academic year. The initiative will have a real impact on our ability to fuel children’s learning in Lewisham.
“The taste, nutrition and choice of school meals for all children, irrespective of their allergens or dietary requirements, has improved greatly over recent years. I’m incredibly proud to be part of the amazing team of frontline colleagues who proudly serve pupils every day, and I can’t wait for term to start.”
Every borough in the capital has received £2.65 per meal in funding to enable schools to deliver the meals over the next year. This is higher than the amount they receive from Government, who recently increased its funding from £2.41 to £2.53 per meal following the Mayor’s unprecedented intervention.
The free school meals expansion also received praise from chefs including:
- Jamie Oliver MBE: “Nourishing our kids with nutritious and delicious food at lunch time is an investment in their future, boosts our economy and sets them up for a healthier and more productive life. Sadiq Khan has recognised this by giving all primary schoolchildren a free school meal and now we need politicians across all parties to put child health above politics and act now.”
- Tom Kerridge said: “I'm pleased that the Mayor of London has introduced free school meals for primary schoolchildren in London. So many families are struggling to get by and particularly worry about how to feed their children in the current climate, so the Mayor's expansion of free school meals will make a huge difference to them.”
- Melissa Hemsley said: “I’m pleased to lend my support to the Mayor’s programme to ensure primary schoolchild in London has access to free school meals. All children deserve access to a free school lunch at a particularly difficult time for many households and families.”