Some of the poorest children and teenagers in Wales cannot get free school meals and help with uniform costs because education benefits have not kept pace with inflation. In the month when the Welsh Government rolled out non means-tested free school meals to every primary school child in Wales, including the very richest, an influential think tank warns many older low income children are losing out.
The Bevan Foundation is calling on Cardiff Bay to increase eligibility thresholds and cash values of Welsh benefits such as free school meals and the School Essentials Grant. It says to be eligible in 2024 families have to be £1,785 a year poorer than they were in 2019.
New research by the foundation reveals the impact of the Welsh Government’s decisions over many years to not up the cash value and eligibility criteria of most Welsh benefits in line with inflation. Among the Welsh benefits that have been affected have been the School Essentials Grant and Free School Meals in secondary school. You can read about free school meals for youngest pupils here
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The School Essentials Grant provides a cash grant to children from low-income families towards the cost of school uniform and other equipment. To receive the grant and free school meals in secondary school a child’s parent must either receive legacy benefits or Universal Credit, and have an annual net earned household income of less than £7,400 - but the Bevan Foundation says had the earned household income element of the criteria increased in line with inflation, the threshold would now stand at £9,185.23 a year. Join our WhatsApp news community here for the latest breaking news.
“To be eligible for a free school meal in secondary school or the School Essentials Grant, a family would have to be £1,785 a year poorer than in 2019. Another way to look at this is that in 2019, a single parent could work just over 17 hours a week at the National Living Wage and still qualify,” The Bevan Foundation’s head of policy (poverty) Dr Steffan Evans said.
“Today, the same parent can only work 12.5 hours a week before they are ineligible. This means that no working parent as per the Welsh Government own definition is able to access either scheme.”
The think tank is calling on the Welsh Government to end what it describes as a “silent squeeze on Welsh benefits”. "This squeeze is locking people in real hardship out of the help they need and cutting the value of payments they do receive", Dr Evans warned.
The Bevan Foundation is urging the Welsh Government to increase the eligibility thresholds and cash values of all Welsh benefits at least in line with inflation in the 2025-26 budget "and thereafter". The think tank has also called on the Welsh Government to restore "where possible" eligibility thresholds and cash value of all Welsh benefits to their real terms value at the time they were last uprated.
The Foundation’s Director, Dr Victoria Winckler said: “The work already ongoing in Welsh Government to establish a Welsh Benefits System has the potential to be a game changer for low-income families across the nation. However, if the Welsh Government is committed to tackling poverty and inequality, to making work pay and to improving the health, wellbeing and educational attainment of the people of Wales then it must also commit to increasing Welsh benefits in line with inflation.”
Steffan Evans added: “Welsh benefits provide a vital lifeline for families all over Wales and are one of the main tools at the Welsh Government’s disposal to reduce poverty. The Welsh Government’s decision to not uprate the majority of these benefits in line with inflation has put a ‘silent squeeze’ on Wales’ low income families.
"This squeeze is locking people in real hardship out of the help they need and cutting the value of payments they do receive. They must make sure that they don’t repeat this mistake this autumn.”
Responding to the report a Welsh Government spokesperson said: “We have focused on the delivery of universal primary free school meals to increase entitlement and we are learning valuable lessons that will inform any further changes. Whilst there are currently no plans to extend the offer, we are keeping the eligibility criteria under review in the longer term.”
This is is how the School Essentials Grant works and who is eligible
The School Essentials Grant is a support payment to help cover the cost of essentials needed for school. Families on lower incomes who receive certain benefits, those seeking asylum, and children in care can claim £125 per child per year to help with school costs in primary and secondary school.
For children going into year 7, there is £200 available in recognition of the extra cost of starting secondary school.
The grant can be used to pay for:
Families must register their eligibility for the School Essentials Grant through their local authority and can apply every year for each of their children. Learners from all education settings are eligible as long as they are aged four (in Reception) to 16.
For a learner to be eligible, their parent must receive one or more of the following:
Even if a child already receives a free school meal, families will still need to check eligibility to access the School Essentials Grant and extra funding for your school.
How much am I entitled to?
Families of primary and secondary school learners (if eligible) are entitled to up to £125 per child, per year. Families of secondary school learners in year 7 (if eligible) are entitled to up to £200 per child, per year.
