Debate contribution: Holiday Hunger and the High Cost of School Uniforms

Debate contribution by Mr Danny Baker on 12 November 2024.

MLA

Mr Danny Baker

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

12 November 2024

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

Holiday Hunger and the High Cost of School Uniforms

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 4658730

Read the official Assembly record

Text

I thank the Members who tabled the motion, which is very important. It was debated in recent months, and, during that time, our community and voluntary sector has been doing the heavy lifting.

Great work is being done by Monkstown Boxing Club and the Lagmore Youth Project, for example. During the summer, I volunteered at Lagmore and ran an eight-week programme. It was to help with holiday hunger — not that any of the children who were participating in the programme knew what it was about. We were able to have it in a Belfast city park, where we had access to play facilities and the pitch. We had fun and games, but we were putting food in their wee bellies. There is deprivation in every part of society. All of us have those issues coming into our constituency offices, but it hits home when you are at the coalface, volunteering. One of the children was pocketing food, on the side, because he wanted to bring it home for his older sister. If we work together, we can make a difference and most certainly protect the most vulnerable children in society, even with our constrained budgets. It is important that we do that. That is why I have proposed a Member's Bill that aims to tackle holiday hunger and ensure that no child goes hungry. The cost-of-living crisis has deepened, and we are all feeling it in our pockets. Society is feeling it, and we want to help as many people as possible, but it hits a lot harder for some than for others. My Bill seeks to ensure that children who are in receipt of free school meals will continue to get that security during the holiday breaks through direct payments to their families. The provision of free school meals enables many children to access a nutritious meal, which, in some cases, will be their main meal of the day. That brings with it a range of physical and mental benefits, as well as educational benefits. The links between educational underachievement and deprivation are well known. Evidence suggests that some children returning to school from weeks or months of holiday are intellectually behind classmates who have had access to a wholesome diet during the school holidays. Legislation is needed, now, to make a long-term commitment so that children who need free school meals, and their families, are supported to ensure that they get the nutrition that they need to help fulfil their potential. The Minister will be aware that, due to the cuts imposed from London, our education system has limited resources. We should be targeting that additional funding to where it is needed the most. Unfortunately, based on my correspondence with the Minister, I know that he has no intention of legislating to end holiday hunger. Hopefully, that has changed. Much work is needed in the time ahead. A number of important steps need to be taken, including encouraging children and young people who are entitled to a free school meal to avail themselves of it. The Minister should, urgently, publish his Department's review of the eligibility criteria for free school meals and uniform grants. Sinn Féin looks forward to responding to that review, and we are open to exploring all the options for increasing the number of children and young people who are able to access free school meals and uniform grants. The Minister's announcement of an interim change to the eligibility criteria for families applying for free school meals and uniform grants was a welcome step in the right direction and will help workers and families to access support. Tackling poverty and social exclusion and patterns of deprivation, based on objective need, is woven into the Good Friday Agreement, and legislating to end holiday hunger is underpinned by that principle. I fully accept that ending holiday hunger for only those children who are in receipt of free school meals will not go far enough. However, it is a fundamental first step that must be taken on the journey to addressing child poverty and meeting objective need. As I said, by working together, we can help to assure families, ease that pressure and ensure that no child goes hungry, no matter the time of year. The consultation and survey on my Member's Bill have gone live today. I would like Members to help out and contribute by filling in the survey. I look forward to working with everybody on the Bill.

744 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not qualifying

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 11:33 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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