Over half a million children set to receive free school meals
From September 2026, the government is set to extend free school meals to every child in a Universal Credit household and has begun the process of revising the long overdue School Food Standards.
The announcement, part of the government’s wider Plan for Change, is expected to save families up to £500 per child every year and is hoped to lift 100,000 children out of poverty. It marks a major step forward in tackling child poverty and improving education outcomes, as access to a healthy school meal has been shown to support better learning, behaviour and future opportunities.
Within the announcement, the government also pledged to revise the current School Food Standards to provide better nutrition guidance for schools. With research showing previous poor compliance to the standards, Action on Salt and Sugar, who called for this change during last year’s Sugar Awareness Week, welcomes the move. We urge the government to prioritise healthy foods and prohibit high sugar products that cause children to exceed their daily sugar limits.
Dr Kawther Hashem, Head of Research and Impact at Action on Sugar based at Queen Mary University of London says: “Schools should be a safe space from products high in fat, salt, and sugar and we’re not doing enough to help our children grow up healthy or protected from diet-related diseases. We applaud the government’s commitment to improve the school food standards.”
The full announcement can be read on the government website.
