Oireachtas Joint Committee on Education and Social Protection
School Meals Programme
16 December 2015
Opening Statement by Ms. Helen Faughnan, Assistant Secretary, Department
of Social Protection
Check Against Delivery
Chairperson, Committee Members,
I would like to thank the Committee for the opportunity to appear before it
today on the matter of the school meals programme.
Introduction to the school meals programme
The Department of Social Protection administers the school meals programme
as a targeted intervention for children at risk of food poverty and educational
disadvantage. Proper nutrition can improve children’s ability to concentrate,
improve disruptive behaviour and encourage children to attend school.
The school meals programme aims to provide regular nutritious food to
children who are unable, by reason of lack of food, to take full advantage of
the education provided for them. Funding the provision of food services in
schools guarantees on-going positive returns on a public investment in the
health and educational performance of future generations. There is a
particular focus on the provision of breakfast clubs within the programme
which provide very positive outcomes for vulnerable children in terms of their
school attendance, punctuality and energy levels.
The programme provides funding towards the provision of food services to
some 1,700 schools and organisations which benefits approximately 217,000
children at a total cost of €39 million. An additional €3 million was allocated to
the programme as part of Budget 2016, bringing the total allocation to €42
million in 2016. The programme is an important component of policies to
encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement by children
especially those from the most disadvantaged background.
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There are two schemes operated under the school meals programme:
 the Urban School Meals Scheme; and the
 School Meals Local Projects Scheme.
The Urban School Meals Scheme is a statutory scheme that is operated in
conjunction with Local Authorities. The Urban Scheme is confined to national
school children and the decision on eligibility of individual children and schools
rests with the Local Authorities, subject to this Department’s endorsement.
The Department of Social Protection jointly funds the food costs on a 50/50
basis with the Local Authorities who are responsible for the administration and
operation of the scheme. Over 300 schools benefit from the Urban School
Meal’s Scheme, at an annual cost to the Department of Social Protection of
approximately €1m.
The School Meals Local Projects Scheme provides funding directly to primary
schools, secondary schools, local groups and voluntary organisations, in both
urban and rural areas, which operate their own school meals projects. The
scheme was established to assist school meals projects operating outside the
remit of the Urban School Meals scheme. At the end of the previous academic
year 2014/2015, almost 1,200 schools and over 200 pre-schools and other
groups where receiving funding under this scheme.
Funding under the school meals scheme
In line with the national policy framework for children and young people,
Better Outcomes Brighter Futures, priority for new applications for funding has
been given to schools which are part of the Department of Education and Skills
initiative for disadvantaged schools “Delivering Equality of Opportunity in
Schools” (DEIS). Funding is allocated on a school year basis and schools/groups
must reapply for funding in advance of each school year.
In recognition of the benefits that the scheme provides and despite severe
pressure on the social protection budget, Government has provided for the
increased allocation of some 20% for the school meals programme - increasing
it from €35 million in 2012 to €42 million in 2016. The extra funding provided
under the scheme in recent years has extended the scheme to additional DEIS
and special schools and has provided for increased payments to existing
schools with a particular emphasis on breakfast clubs. The additional €3 million
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provided for next year will again be used to build on the previous
commitments to prioritise the provision of breakfast clubs.
Funding under the School Meals Local Projects scheme is based on a maximum
rate of payment per meal, per child, per day. Funding is for food costs only. All
food must be of suitable quality and nutritional value, and prepared and
consumed in an appropriate environment. The type and range of meals
provided, as well as the method and logistics of supplying the meals, are
decided by the individual local groups and schools that operate the projects.
Responsibility for all aspects of the day-to-day operation of the scheme lies
with the school/group. All schools have a responsibility to implement healthy
eating policies and the Department advises schools to consult relevant healthy
eating publications - links to which are available on the Department’s website
at www.welfare.ie.
Targeting schools
Analysis undertaken with the Department of Education and Skills shows that
the majority of DEIS schools are participating in the school meals scheme.
Analysis shows a high percentage of schools participating from DEIS bands 1
and 2, and also in the urban and town areas, showing that the scheme is
clearly targeting the most educationally disadvantaged pupils in the State.
DEIS schools not participating in the scheme are generally rural schools where
an identified need for the scheme has not been established. The Department
has written twice to all DEIS schools not participating in the scheme over the
last 2 years inviting them to participate.
Inspection Programme
The Department commenced a school meals inspection programme in 2012
which involves on-site visits by Social Welfare Inspectors and these inspections
strengthen and support the controls in place.
Almost 250 schools and organisations have been examined to date under this
inspection programme. The inspections find a high rate of compliance by
funded organisations/schools with the conditions of the scheme. In cases
where there is non-compliance, appropriate action is taken by the Department
depending on the issues identified. There is a balance to be maintained by the
Department in terms of managing payments to schools while continuing to
provide for a service for the children therein.
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In addition, the inspection programme, commenced in 2012, has been
expanded and a three year programme is in place since August 2015 to cover
the inspection of all schools. To support this inspection programme, additional
staffing resources have been allocated to the school meals section of the
Department. Over 140 schools and organisations were examined in 2015.
While analysis of the returned reports is ongoing, indications are that the
results will be similar to previous years, showing a high rate of compliance.
Conclusion
To conclude, I want to assure the Committee that the Department is
committed to the ongoing development and administration of the school
meals programme and recognises the obvious benefits it provides to children.
Applications for the scheme for the current year have been processed where
the relevant documentation has been provided to the Department.
I trust the presentation is of assistance to the Committee and I am happy to
discuss any issues raised.
Ends
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