Parents hit by 'food cost crisis' as school meal prices rise by a third

Funding for free school meals has failed to keep up with the rising cost of food, meaning schools are forced to fill the gap. difference to education budgets, it has been warned< /p> Families with two children can be hit with a bill of over £1,000 a year for school meals (
Image: Humphrey Nemar.)

Parents are facing a 'food cost crisis', with the price of school meals skyrocketing by more than a third in some parts of the country.

Families with two children can be hit with a bill of over £1,000 a year for school meals, almost £250 more than in 2019, according to research by the Lib Dems.< /p>
And government funding for free school meals has also failed to keep up with the rising cost of food, meaning schools are forced to make up the difference from school budgets. teaching.

Hundreds of schools have seen prices go up to £2.80, well above the £2.41 given for free baby meals.

Ministers only increased the funding rate for free school meals for infants by 7p per meal this school year, an increase of less than half the rate of inflation at the time.
Schools must find an extra £74 per pupil per year in Hampshire, £57 in West Sussex and £36 in East Sussex, to make up the shortfall, the Lib Dems have said.
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Lib Dem education spokeswoman Munira Wilson said: 'Under the Tories, schools are choosing between teaching children and feeding them' (
Picture:
PENNSYLVANIA)
Party analysis found pupils at 15 secondary schools in East Sussex are being charged £2.74 for a main course, up 34% since September 2019.

In an open letter to parents, the area county council said its contract with Chartwells caterers required it to raise prices in line with inflation.

Meanwhile, over 400 schools in Hampshire have seen prices rise from £2.40 in September 2019 to £2.80 in January 2023, an increase of 17%.

The county council blamed "significantly increased costs, including those resulting from rising food prices", for the price increases.

In West Sussex, Chartwells has raised its prices for primary schools to £2.71, up 15.3% since 2019, while Surrey has seen prices for 226 primary schools rise by more than 10 %.

The Lib Dems are calling on the government to extend free school meals to all children in households receiving

Politics May 2, 2023 0 41 Add to Reading List

Parents hit by 'food cost crisis' as school meal prices rise by a third

Funding for free school meals has failed to keep up with the rising cost of food, meaning schools are forced to fill the gap. difference to education budgets, it has been warned< /p> Families with two children can be hit with a bill of over £1,000 a year for school meals (

Image: Humphrey Nemar.)

Parents are facing a 'food cost crisis', with the price of school meals skyrocketing by more than a third in some parts of the country.

Families with two children can be hit with a bill of over £1,000 a year for school meals, almost £250 more than in 2019, according to research by the Lib Dems.< /p>

And government funding for free school meals has also failed to keep up with the rising cost of food, meaning schools are forced to make up the difference from school budgets. teaching.

Hundreds of schools have seen prices go up to £2.80, well above the £2.41 given for free baby meals.

Ministers only increased the funding rate for free school meals for infants by 7p per meal this school year, an increase of less than half the rate of inflation at the time.

Schools must find an extra £74 per pupil per year in Hampshire, £57 in West Sussex and £36 in East Sussex, to make up the shortfall, the Lib Dems have said.

Lib Dem education spokeswoman Munira Wilson said: 'Under the Tories, schools are choosing between teaching children and feeding them' (

Picture:

PENNSYLVANIA)

Party analysis found pupils at 15 secondary schools in East Sussex are being charged £2.74 for a main course, up 34% since September 2019.

In an open letter to parents, the area county council said its contract with Chartwells caterers required it to raise prices in line with inflation.

Meanwhile, over 400 schools in Hampshire have seen prices rise from £2.40 in September 2019 to £2.80 in January 2023, an increase of 17%.

The county council blamed "significantly increased costs, including those resulting from rising food prices", for the price increases.

In West Sussex, Chartwells has raised its prices for primary schools to £2.71, up 15.3% since 2019, while Surrey has seen prices for 226 primary schools rise by more than 10 %.

The Lib Dems are calling on the government to extend free school meals to all children in households receiving