Magic Breakfast has launched an urgent campaign calling on the Government to announce new funding for school breakfasts for children at risk of hunger, in the 3rd of March Budget.
The campaign calls for the Government to implement the content of the School Breakfast Bill, which has been delayed indefinitely due to a reduced parliamentary calendar during lockdown. The Bill, which has cross-party support from over 70 MPs, would scale up the National School Breakfast Programme, so that all 8,700 schools with high levels of disadvantage receive support to provide children at risk of hunger with a nutritious breakfast. It would also make this support permanent and sustainable.
Government funding for the National School Breakfast Programme is due to end in July 2021. Without additional funding committed in the March Budget, more children will be at risk of hunger in the morning and unable to learn effectively.
Such an investment will also boost our economy. New research published by Pro Bono Economics, in partnership with Magic Breakfast and Heinz, has found that for every £1 invested in school breakfasts, there is the potential to generate £50 in long-term benefits to the economy. Learn more about the report here.
As the UK looks toward recovering from the pandemic, funding school breakfast provision is a sensible long-term solution to not only tackle child hunger, but also to close the educational attainment gap and rebuild the economy.
Please email your MP and ask them to support #BreakfastInTheBudget before 3rd March.
Magic Breakfast would like to thank Ginger Pixie Photography for the images used in this campaign.