Food banks increasing in schools for pupils' families

Tuesday 10th September 2019 09:46 EDT
 

More schools in England are setting up food banks to help feed their pupils' families, according to the biggest school governors' organisation.

The National Governance Association's annual survey found 8% of governors were in schools which had food banks - up from 7% last year.

The highest proportion were in the North East - where 13% of governors were in schools with a food bank. 

Heads' leader Geoff Barton said schools faced "rising levels of poverty".

"It is a shameful situation in a country which is among the wealthiest in the world," said Mr Barton, leader of the ASCL head teachers' union.

The National Governance Association (NGA) surveyed 6,000 governors about the challenges facing their schools. School governors, who are often volunteers such as parents or representatives of the local community, warned that funding shortages and teacher recruitment were among the biggest problems.

But the survey also showed the rising challenge of having to offer welfare services to families - such as running food banks, offering meals outside of term time and washing pupils' clothes and uniforms.

Food banks, which provide emergency supplies of food, were most common in schools in the north-east of England, the West Midlands and London - and were more likely in nursery and primary schools than in secondary.

Among nursery school governors, 2% reported their schools were providing emergency loans to parents.


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