Monday 11 March 2013

Hey, We’d All Like A ‘Free Lunch’, Wouldn’t We?

Tens of thousands of children living below the poverty line in some of the wealthiest parts of England's home counties may be unable to afford a proper lunch but fail to qualify for free school meals, according to a study…
Not the qualification there. Now who is prone to such obfuscation?
…by the Children's Society.
Well, of course!
The Children's Society wants free school meals for to be extended to all families receiving universal credit from October. This – at an estimated cost of £500m a year in England – would lift 100,000 children out of poverty and enable the government to keep child poverty targets on track.
Yes, I'm sure they do. That would, of course, add to their population of 'farmed' children and consolidate their power in government, wouldn't it? Never mind that that 'free' lunch has to be paid for by someone.
Matthew Reed, the charity's chief executive, said: "It is shocking that huge numbers of children in poverty across the country are missing out on a free school meal. Every child in poverty should be entitled to this vital support."
Translation: "Every child we can add to our roll is another example of how we are 'needed'!"
Linda Cregan, chief executive of the Children's Food Trust, supported the call for free school meal entitlement to be extended to all families receiving universal credits. She said: "Evidence shows that when children eat better, they do better in class. Poor diet and hunger have a marked detrimental impact on a child's ability to reach their full potential.
"Every pupil should be given the same chance to learn and achieve, and that's why it's so important that all children from families who receive universal credits should automatically qualify for free school meals.
Well, that takes care of the after lunch portion of the school day. What next? Free breakfasts too, to ensure they aren't 'disadvantaged' in the before-lunch period?
If granted, the next step would be to support schools in making sure these families register for them and take them."
Whether they like it or not?

13 comments:

Quiet_Man said...

The maxim that 'There's no such thing as a free lunch' seems to have escaped the left and various other 'dogooders' of the liberal elite who purport to do good for themselves by 'doing good'

PJH said...

"extended to all families receiving universal credits"

Isn't the clue in the use of the word "universal" - they want all kids to get free school meals?

Or am I missing something here....

Tatty said...

"...register for them and take them."

Whether they like it or not?


Yep, because registering is what always benefits Them and never You. It's vital for You to give Them access to a shitload of cash from the public purse to shovel into the pockets of vested interests.

Just one such example is that the school will receive a Pupil Premium for every child that is simply eligible for "free" school meals. At my last look it was up to £600 per pupil depending on which part of the country you reside.

There are no restrictions or accountability on how it is spent.

You're led to believe that it will be spent on the educational needs of the child but it can just as easily be spent on a "fact-finding" trip to the Maldives for the headmaster and his favourite teacher/pupil. Who would know, really ?

You may be poor but your signature is worth a frickin' fortune - for other people.

Demetrius said...

Snag, if free school meals are given then if they are "healthy" etc. the recipients may not want to eat them being weaned on junk food etc. The scale of this problem is not fully realised.

Antisthenes said...

The left has reached it's goal in that it has turned society into a culturally socialist one. A society where most are dependent on the state and have come to believe that entitlement of state largess is their right. As always happens when achieving cultural socialism the price to be paid is economic incontinence. So the resulting impoverishment causes the ability to maintain the largess to decrease while the call to increase the largess to increase. It is therefore no wonder that every fake charity and vested interest is taking up the call to be given more. The left have won a pyrrhic victory though because what they have constructed is on foundations of sand so eventually it will collapse. It has always done so in the past and I see no reason why it will not again. Ludwig Von Mises tells us that dependency states are very unstable states and what is currently occurring is very much proving him right.

chris said...

You're so behind the times, Julia. They've already got that one covered...

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-lancashire-20945553

Anonymous said...

From the BBC puffpiece link

"...Some children say they have had last night's KFC for breakfast..."

Yes, really sounds like parental poverty.

But not of money, just poverty of responsibility, of duty and of shame.

John Pickworth said...

"This (extending free school meals) would lift 100,000 children out of poverty"

Seriously?

How the hell do they figure that works?

Anonymous said...

Bunny

Out of interest for the unemployed and people in relative 'poverty', how many support workers, civil servants and charity workers are there? How many people make a living by keeping these people poor and the economic brakes on?

Fidel Cuntstruck said...

@JP "Seriously?

How the hell do they figure that works?
"

They don't, they simply don't go that far. A quick google of their status reveals them to be a hugely wealthy organisation so my suggestion to them would be for them to fund this for a year or two so they can prove the point.

Tatty said...

Fidel - "my suggestion to them would be for them to fund this for a year or two so they can prove the point

Hear hear !

JuliaM said...

"...who purport to do good for themselves by 'doing good'"

Judging by the salaries of the top charidee bosses, they do very well for themselves indeed!

"Or am I missing something here...."

Nope, I doubt it. These people never stop.

"...a Pupil Premium for every child..."

Oh, indeed!

JuliaM said...

"They've already got that one covered..."

Grrr... :/

"But not of money, just poverty of responsibility, of duty and of shame."

You can't shame the shameless.