Free school meals made permanent at nurseries and secondary schools

By Noah Vickers, Local Democracy Reporter

Free lunches in nurseries and secondary schools in Westminster will continue to be served on a “permanent basis”, the borough has announced.

Labour-run Westminster City council confirmed this week that it will be extending its programme of free school meals for pupils aged between three and 14 years into the coming academic year and beyond.

The commitment has been made possible, the council said, thanks to London mayor Sadiq Khan who pledged to make his own free school meals programme permanent in his re-election manifesto this year.

Mr Khan’s re-election means that the earliest his scheme could be removed would be upon the election of a future mayor, which is not expected before May 2028.

The London-wide programme provides lunches on a universal basis for all state primary school children in the capital. Some boroughs, like Westminster, were already providing those meals when Mr Khan launched the policy, initially on a year-long basis, in 2023 – but all councils have received funding regardless.

In Westminster, meals are provided on a universal basis to nursery children and students up to and including Year 9 at secondary schools in the borough.

Labour-run Southwark meanwhile provides free lunches to all secondary school students whose families receive universal credit, but who would ordinarily miss out because they earn above £7,400 per year as a household.

Westminster council leader Adam Hug said the extra free school meals in his borough “have offered a lifeline to struggling families during a time of soaring food and energy prices”.

He said: “We want children in Westminster to have the best start in life.

“We’ve heard heartbreaking stories of children being sent to school with just a couple of biscuits in their lunchbox. Research shows that a nutritious lunch has enormous benefits for a child’s concentration in the classroom and maximising their learning potential.