The UK government has announced a significant expansion of free school meal eligibility, set to benefit hundreds of thousands more children across England starting from the 2026/27 academic year. This policy change will remove the current £7,400 household income cap for families claiming Universal Credit, allowing all children in these households to receive free school meals regardless of income level.
Currently, free school meals are available to pupils in families on Universal Credit earning less than £7,400 annually after tax, excluding benefits. This threshold has limited access to free meals for many families facing financial hardship, but the upcoming change promises to broaden support dramatically. The Department for Education (DfE) estimates that over 500,000 additional children will become eligible, putting nearly £500 back into parents’ pockets each year.
Nearly one in four pupils in England—about 2.17 million children—were eligible for free school meals as of January 2025, an increase from 2.09 million in January 2024. The new policy aims to raise this number significantly by extending eligibility to all children in Universal Credit households, regardless of their income, from September 2026.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer hailed the expansion as a "truly historic moment" for the country. He emphasized that feeding more children for free is one of the most impactful interventions to support families, tackle poverty, and prepare children to succeed academically. "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," Starmer said.
Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson echoed these sentiments, describing the move as a moral mission to combat child poverty. She highlighted that the government is working swiftly to implement the change while ensuring schools are equipped to deliver the increased provision. Speaking to BBC Breakfast, Phillipson said, "We’re working as quickly as we can because we do appreciate the urgency, but we also need to work with schools to make this change happen." She also assured that the expansion would be fully funded.
The policy will primarily benefit children aged 8 to 16, as pupils in Reception to Year 2 already receive universal infant free school meals. In London, where all primary school children already have free meals, the expansion will extend eligibility to all secondary school pupils in Universal Credit households, marking a significant change for the capital's older students.
Financially, the long-term cost of this policy is projected at around £1 billion annually, benefiting approximately 1.7 million children between Years 3 and 11. The government suggests this could lift around 100,000 children out of poverty in the longer term. However, the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) provides a more cautious analysis, noting that transitional protections introduced in 2018 have already expanded free school meal access. These protections prevent children from losing eligibility when family circumstances change, meaning many more children currently receive free meals than would under the original income cap.
As a result, in the short run, the costs and benefits of the expanded eligibility will be smaller. The government estimates that around 500,000 children will benefit initially, with an associated cost closer to £250 million annually, plus an estimated £50 million in additional funding for devolved governments. This means the immediate impact on poverty reduction will be less dramatic than the long-term projections suggest.
Campaigners and education leaders have broadly welcomed the announcement as a vital step toward alleviating child poverty. However, many have urged the government to adopt auto-enrolment for free school meals to ensure that all eligible children receive them without parents having to apply manually. Arooj Shah, chairwoman of the Local Government Association’s children and young people board, highlighted ongoing challenges councils face with data sharing and resources. She advocated for automatic enrolment, stating it would "streamline the process and ensure as many children as possible can benefit, at a time when many families are still under financial pressure." Paul Whiteman, general secretary at the school leaders’ union NAHT, emphasized that "no child should ever have to go hungry due to their parents’ financial circumstances," calling for auto-enrolment to prevent eligible children from missing out.
Charities have praised the expansion as a "first step" but also called on the government to remove the two-child benefit cap, a policy that limits benefits for families with more than two children and has been criticized for exacerbating child poverty.
The government’s child poverty taskforce is expected to publish a comprehensive 10-year strategy later in 2025, which will likely address broader measures to reduce child poverty beyond free school meals.
Parents currently must apply for free school meals on behalf of their children, as eligibility does not automatically guarantee enrollment. Education leaders argue that this application process can be a barrier to access, particularly for families under financial or social stress.
With the expansion set to begin in September 2026, schools and local authorities are preparing for the increased demand. Education Secretary Phillipson assured that funding will be provided to ensure schools can deliver the meals effectively, recognizing the importance of proper nutrition in supporting children's health and academic performance.
Indeed, there is evidence suggesting that access to free school meals benefits children's health and educational attainment, making this policy not only a poverty alleviation measure but also a contributor to long-term social mobility.
Despite the positive reception, the Institute for Fiscal Studies cautions that if the primary goal is to reduce child poverty, other measures might be more cost-effective. For example, lifting the two-child benefit cap could have a lower cost per child lifted out of poverty compared to expanding free school meals.
As the government moves forward with this policy, the balance between immediate support and long-term impact will be closely watched by policymakers, educators, and families alike. The coming year will be critical in setting the stage for a wider social support framework aimed at breaking the cycle of child poverty in England.
