Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Covid-19: Pupils Receiving Free School Meals

Monday 1 March 2021 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 2 Partly answered 0 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Kevin Brennan inquired about the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on the attainment of pupils receiving free school meals.
  • The government has commissioned a study to assess the progress of pupils during the academic year, including those receiving free school meals.
  • The government has committed 1 billion to help students catch up on their lost education, including a 350 million national tutoring programme for the most disadvantaged pupils.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Kevin Brennan Lab
Education
Context

The question arises from concerns about the impact of the pandemic on educational outcomes for disadvantaged students who receive free school meals. The MP seeks to understand the government's assessment of this issue.

Question

What recent assessment has been made of the effect of the covid-19 outbreak on the attainment of pupils in receipt of free school meals?

Answer from Nick Gibb

Our education recovery package supports pupils most in need of catch-up support, including pupils receiving free school meals. We have commissioned a study to assess the progress of pupils during this academic year, including groups such as pupils receiving free school meals. Initial findings from the study of 400,000 reading and maths assessments were published last week.

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Q2 Kevin Brennan Lab
Education
Context

The MP follows up by questioning the government's commitment and specificity regarding support for students who have been severely impacted by school closures, especially those receiving free school meals. He refers to previous statements about not being timid in responses but finds recent answers vague.

Question

May I wish you and the House a happy Saint David's day, Mr Speaker? The Secretary of State has said that no child's prospects should be blighted by the pandemic and that he would not be timid in his responses, but earlier he sounded vague when he was asked for specifics. What specific interventions are being planned by Ministers to target those poor pupils for whom the pandemic has been an extinction level event for their education?

Answer from Nick Gibb

Last year, we committed £1 billion to help all students catch up on their lost education, including a £350 million national tutoring programme for the most disadvantaged and most in need. Last month, the Prime Minister announced a further £300 million of catch-up funding, and last week we increased it by a further £400 million. That is £1.7 billion in total committed to ensuring that no pupil will suffer long-term damage to their prospects as a result of the pandemic.

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