Polly has hailed the announcement of two new free primary school breakfast clubs for Thanet.
From April, Northdown Primary School in Margate and Dame Janet Primary School in Ramsgate will be able to offer free breakfast to all pupils free of charge at the beginning of the school day.
The two new clubs bring the total in the East Thanet constituency up to three, following the opening of Salmestone Primary School’s free breakfast club last year. Polly said she was excited to see more clubs open in East Thanet over the coming years as the government rolls out further support for parents.
She said:
“I enjoyed meeting with children and parents at the launch of Salmestone Primary School’s free breakfast club in Margate last year, where children told me how much they enjoyed the club and how helpful it was for their busy families. I’m delighted that Northdown Primary in Margate and Dame Janet Primary in Ramsgate will be opening their new free breakfast clubs from April, so even more children and their parents can benefit.
“I know how much many families in Thanet are struggling to juggle work and childcare, or even to put food on the table at the moment. Labour’s free breakfast clubs offer a great helping hand to parents and mean every child can get a healthy start to the school day. I look forward to even more being opened in Thanet over the next few years.”
Over 300,000 children are set to benefit from Best Start free breakfast clubs in April, as the government prioritises support to tackle the cost of living and help parents juggle work and family life.
Schools already enrolled on the programme have served up 7 million meals to date and saved families up to £450 per year, while giving parents half an hour of free childcare every morning. Meanwhile, children are benefitting from healthy breakfasts and being in school earlier, with evidence showing improved attendance, attainment and behaviour.
Applications open today for 1,500 schools to join in September. Backed by £80 million targeting the most disadvantaged areas, the scheme builds on the government’s decisions to prioritise investment to help families with the cost of living, including:
- Delivering 30 hours a week of free childcare, saving parents up to £7500
- Expanding free school meals to half a million more children
- Building school-based nurseries, creating thousands more places
- Cutting the cost of branded school uniforms
- Scrapping the two-child limit and lifting 450,000 children out of poverty, including more than 4000 in East Thanet.