Major change for families on Universal Credit announced as parents set to save £500 a year - Manchester Evening News

Major change for families on Universal Credit announced as parents set to save £500 a yearThe government has announced that hundreds of thousands more children will now be eligible for free

school mealsCommentsNewsCharlotte Fisher23:01, 04 Jun 2025More children will be eligible for free school meals from next year (Image: PA) Families on Universal Credit could save £500 a year

after the government announced a huge change to the eligibility criteria for free school meals. The move will see over half a million more children get free school meals at the start of the

next academic year.

The government has announced plans to expand the entitlement of free school meals to all children in households in receipt of Universal Credit from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).

‌ The change in eligibility will see every pupil whose household is on Universal Credit be entitled to free school meals from the start of the 2026 school year.

‌ Labour is hoping that by making sure more children have access to school meals they can "break down barriers to opportunity by driving better behaviour, attainment and wellbeing in schools

while putting nearly £500 in parents’ pockets."

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “It is the moral mission of this government to tackle the stain of child poverty, and today this government takes a giant step towards ending it

with targeted support that puts money back in parents’ pockets.

“From free school meals to free breakfast clubs, breaking the cycle of child poverty is at the heart of our Plan for Change to cut the unfair link between background and success.

Article continues below “We believe that background shouldn’t mean destiny. Today’s historic step will help us to deliver excellence everywhere, for every child and give more young people

the chance to get on in life.”

It comes after the government announced the roll out of 750 free breakfast clubs across the UK in April earlier this year.

The new entitlement to free school meals is expected to save parents £500 and lift 100,000 children out of poverty, according to the government.

‌ Since 2018, children have only been eligible for free school meals if their household income is less than £7,400 per year, meaning hundreds of thousands of children living in poverty have

been unable to access free school meals.

The new eligibility will apply in all settings where free school meals are currently being offered(Image: PA) Prime Minister Keir Starmer said: “Working parents across the country are

working tirelessly to provide for their families but are being held back by cost-of-living pressures.

‌ “My government is taking action to ease those pressures. Feeding more children every day, for free, is one of the biggest interventions we can make to put more money in parents’ pockets,

tackle the stain of poverty, and set children up to learn.

“This expansion is a truly historic moment for our country, helping families who need it most and delivering our Plan for Change to give every child, no matter their background, the same

chance to succeed.”

This new entitlement will apply to children in all settings where free school meals are currently delivered, including schools, school-based nurseries and Further Education settings.

‌ Parents will probably be allowed to apply for the free meals before the start of the 2026 school year by providing their National Insurance Number to check their eligibility.

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Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said: “Poverty robs children of opportunities and damages their future prospects. This is a moral scar on our society we are committed to tackling.

‌ “By expanding Free School Meals to all families on Universal Credit, we’re ending the impossible choice thousands of our hardest grafting families must make between paying bills and

feeding their children.

“This is just the latest step of our Plan for Change to put extra pounds in people’s pockets – a downpayment on our Child Poverty Strategy, building on our expansion of free breakfast clubs,

our national minimum wage boost and our cap on Universal Credit deductions through the Fair Repayment Rate.”

The government is also offering more than £13 million in funding to 12 food charities across England to redistribute thousands of tonnes of fresh produce directly from farms to fight food

poverty in communities.

Article continues below And the government is using their Tackling Food Surplus at the Farm Gate scheme to help farms and organisations work together to make sure edible food that might have

been left in fields is instead eaten by people, including schoolchildren.

To ensure quality and nutrition in meals for the future, the government is also acting with experts to revise the School Food Standards, so every school is supported with the latest

nutrition guidance.