There are calls this morning for free school meals to be made accessible to all children in the UK.

A coalition of campaigners made up of more than 40 organisations, unions, councils, politicians and other figures including Henry Dimbleby, co-founder of Leon restaurants and author of the School Food Plan, have joined the call saying food should be available in the same way as books, desks and chairs.

The campaigners said political parties must remove the means testing of children for food in school and deliver healthy school food for all children – in both primary and secondary schools – by 2030.

It follows an announcement last month by Mayor of London Sadiq Khan of an emergency £130 million scheme to extend free school meals to every primary school pupil in the capital for one year, starting in September, in an effort to help struggling households amid the cost-of-living crisis.

Bournemouth Echo: Mayor of London Sadiq Khan recently announced a scheme that will make free school meals available for all primary school children for a year.Mayor of London Sadiq Khan recently announced a scheme that will make free school meals available for all primary school children for a year. (Image: PA)

Currently, households in England receiving Universal Credit must earn below £7,400 a year before benefits and after tax to qualify for free school meals while in Northern Ireland the family earnings threshold is £14,000 after tax and before benefits.

The Scottish Government has committed to providing free school meals for all primary school children, while in Wales the rollout of universal primary free school meals began in September.

Mr Dimbleby said making school meals free to everyone could “change our country forever”.

He said: “If you visit a school which has universal free school meals, you can feel immediately that it is the right thing to do.

"But you don’t need to visit, just look at the evidence – from here and abroad – and you will see that the benefits are measurably huge.

"It would change our country forever.”

Organisations supporting the call include the Food Foundation, School Food Matters, Child Poverty Action Group and The Children’s Society.

Barbara Crowther, from the Children’s Food Campaign, said: “We believe in an education system free at the point of access.

"We don’t means test children for pencils or desks, so why for food?

“We don’t means test adults or children when it comes to hospital and prison meals, so it’s perverse that we still insist on this for our children.

"Many other countries around the world have already realised this and now seeing huge benefits of healthy meals for all.”

She said economic analysis by PWC “shows a return of £1.71 for every pound invested, and potential economic return of up to £100 billion over a 20-year period”.