{"id":46638,"date":"2026-01-04T06:52:49","date_gmt":"2026-01-04T06:52:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/?p=46638"},"modified":"2026-01-04T06:52:49","modified_gmt":"2026-01-04T06:52:49","slug":"cjrzddd4yrdoat_mediumrssat_campaignrss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/2026\/01\/04\/cjrzddd4yrdoat_mediumrssat_campaignrss\/","title":{"rendered":"School meals price increase will &#8216;acutely&#8217; affect children in poverty"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div id=\"\">\n<div data-component=\"byline-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<div data-testid=\"byline\" class=\"sc-573fa0e8-0 bWRWzH\"><span data-testid=\"byline-contributors\" class=\"sc-573fa0e8-11 cOQNNv\"><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"sc-573fa0e8-7 kdBCdE\">Fiona Murray<\/span><span class=\"sc-573fa0e8-9 keGieE\">and<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"sc-573fa0e8-7 kdBCdE\">Barry O&#8217;Connor<!-- -->,<\/span><span data-testid=\"byline-contributors-contributor-1-role-location\" class=\"sc-573fa0e8-8 eDNgSC\">BBC News NI<\/span><\/p>\n<p><\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<figure>\n<div data-component=\"image-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 gtLOOD\">\n<div data-testid=\"hero-image\" class=\"sc-5340b511-1 cMIbKV\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Tears-flowers-and-silence-in-Bondi-and-Streetings-fury.png?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 gUePlo hide-when-no-script\" aria-label=\"image unavailable\"\/><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/ab41\/live\/1e13d210-e7f3-11f0-bd80-5b82e99acd48.jpg.webp 240w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/320\/cpsprodpb\/ab41\/live\/1e13d210-e7f3-11f0-bd80-5b82e99acd48.jpg.webp 320w,https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/School-meals-price-increase-will-acutely-affect-children-in-poverty.webp.webp 480w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/640\/cpsprodpb\/ab41\/live\/1e13d210-e7f3-11f0-bd80-5b82e99acd48.jpg.webp 640w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/800\/cpsprodpb\/ab41\/live\/1e13d210-e7f3-11f0-bd80-5b82e99acd48.jpg.webp 800w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/cpsprodpb\/ab41\/live\/1e13d210-e7f3-11f0-bd80-5b82e99acd48.jpg.webp 1024w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1536\/cpsprodpb\/ab41\/live\/1e13d210-e7f3-11f0-bd80-5b82e99acd48.jpg.webp 1536w\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/School-meals-price-increase-will-acutely-affect-children-in-poverty.webp.webp?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" loading=\"eager\" alt=\"BBC Chris Quinn looking at the camera he has grey hair and is wearing a grey quarter zip and navy top.\" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA\"\/><span class=\"sc-5340b511-2 jVqbAn\">BBC<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><figcaption class=\"sc-536eff7b-0 gnQokQ\">Chris Quinn has called for a &#8220;fundamental rethink&#8221; of school meal provisions<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">School meal price increases will &#8220;acutely&#8221; affect children living in poverty who do not qualify for free school dinners, Northern Ireland&#8217;s Commissioner for Children and Young People has said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Chris Quinn has called for a &#8220;fundamental rethink&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">School meal prices will increase in January for the first time since 2017.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">The Education Authority (EA) has said it is facing a funding gap of \u00a3300m and, unlike previous years, does not expect additional in-year money to address the shortfall.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Under savings plans announced by the EA, the cost of a school dinner for primary and special school pupils will go up by 50p from \u00a32.60 to \u00a33.10.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Post-primary pupils face price rises of 19% on food they buy from school canteens, while pre-school prices will also go up.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Pupils on free school meals will not be affected by the price rises, which took effect from 1 January 2026.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Mr Quinn said he would like to see &#8220;universal free school meals&#8221; provided to children in Northern Ireland.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">He said that food inflation is &#8220;going through the roof&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;We have lots of children here who are from low-income families and the system I think needs a radical rethink.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;I think the cost increase won&#8217;t address the issues. It could have a massive negative impact on their education and their health and well-being.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;The reality is there&#8217;s too many children here going to school hungry and there&#8217;s way too many that miss out on a free school meal,&#8221; Mr Quinn added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">He said that the cost of living has &#8220;gone up massively&#8221; and has impacted working families.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;For families with multiple children in school, there&#8217;s going to have to be a rethink at home, I guess.  I do think we need to address this issue from a different perspective.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure>\n<div data-component=\"image-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 gXrNRM\">\n<div data-testid=\"image\" class=\"sc-5340b511-1 cMIbKV\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Tears-flowers-and-silence-in-Bondi-and-Streetings-fury.png?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 gUePlo hide-when-no-script\" aria-label=\"image unavailable\"\/><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/2e08\/live\/f4af0e90-ba3d-11f0-a0d5-273175887cd7.jpg.webp 240w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/320\/cpsprodpb\/2e08\/live\/f4af0e90-ba3d-11f0-a0d5-273175887cd7.jpg.webp 320w,https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1767509567_478_School-meals-price-increase-will-acutely-affect-children-in-poverty.webp.webp 480w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/640\/cpsprodpb\/2e08\/live\/f4af0e90-ba3d-11f0-a0d5-273175887cd7.jpg.webp 640w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/800\/cpsprodpb\/2e08\/live\/f4af0e90-ba3d-11f0-a0d5-273175887cd7.jpg.webp 800w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/cpsprodpb\/2e08\/live\/f4af0e90-ba3d-11f0-a0d5-273175887cd7.jpg.webp 1024w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1536\/cpsprodpb\/2e08\/live\/f4af0e90-ba3d-11f0-a0d5-273175887cd7.jpg.webp 1536w\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1767509567_478_School-meals-price-increase-will-acutely-affect-children-in-poverty.webp.webp?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Getty Images Two children holding food trays in a canteen. \" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA\"\/><span class=\"sc-5340b511-2 jVqbAn\">Getty Images<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><figcaption class=\"sc-536eff7b-0 gnQokQ\">The EA says the cost of a school dinner has not risen since 2017\/18<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Mother of three Sue McDonnell told BBC News NI that the increase has made her feel &#8220;not good&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;I&#8217;m going to have to sit down and work out how much I can actually afford for them to actually have for school dinners every week,&#8221; she said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Ms McDonnell highlighted the cost of living saying that &#8220;everything is going up&#8221;.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;I actually shop around for everything,&#8221; she added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;Can I afford to give them a school meal, a hot meal, what three days a week at the minute or I might have to cut it down to two.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">She added that she batch cooks lots of her meals which is &#8220;quite handy&#8221; for school meals.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">She questioned why the decision was taken to do an increase in one go.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;They haven&#8217;t done a price increase in the last couple of years. Nobody would have noticed over the last couple of years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;It&#8217;s a lot of money in one go.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<figure>\n<div data-component=\"image-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 gXrNRM\">\n<div data-testid=\"image\" class=\"sc-5340b511-1 cMIbKV\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/Tears-flowers-and-silence-in-Bondi-and-Streetings-fury.png?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 gUePlo hide-when-no-script\" aria-label=\"image unavailable\"\/><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" decoding=\"async\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1280px) 50vw, (min-width: 1008px) 66vw, 96vw\" srcset=\"https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/240\/cpsprodpb\/ade5\/live\/7a192480-e7cf-11f0-b037-23db8319b430.jpg.webp 240w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/320\/cpsprodpb\/ade5\/live\/7a192480-e7cf-11f0-b037-23db8319b430.jpg.webp 320w,https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1767509568_688_School-meals-price-increase-will-acutely-affect-children-in-poverty.webp.webp 480w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/640\/cpsprodpb\/ade5\/live\/7a192480-e7cf-11f0-b037-23db8319b430.jpg.webp 640w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/800\/cpsprodpb\/ade5\/live\/7a192480-e7cf-11f0-b037-23db8319b430.jpg.webp 800w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1024\/cpsprodpb\/ade5\/live\/7a192480-e7cf-11f0-b037-23db8319b430.jpg.webp 1024w,https:\/\/ichef.bbci.co.uk\/news\/1536\/cpsprodpb\/ade5\/live\/7a192480-e7cf-11f0-b037-23db8319b430.jpg.webp 1536w\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1767509568_688_School-meals-price-increase-will-acutely-affect-children-in-poverty.webp.webp?w=640&#038;ssl=1\" loading=\"lazy\" alt=\"Getty Images\/iStockphoto Woman doing financial accounting on a calculator, there are receipts beside her and a laptop in the background.  \" class=\"sc-5340b511-0 hLdNfA\"\/><span class=\"sc-5340b511-2 jVqbAn\">Getty Images\/iStockphoto<\/span><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><figcaption class=\"sc-536eff7b-0 gnQokQ\">Sue McDonnell said she will &#8220;have to sit down and work out how much I can actually afford&#8221;<\/figcaption><\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">Glen Cawley told BBC News NI he is self employed.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;The government is not doing enough for our own people&#8230; of all things I believe in is that every child that goes to school the government should be seeing that every child should get at least one free meal a day and it shouldn&#8217;t matter if there parents are working,&#8221; he said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">&#8220;Working people are finding time hard too.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><h2 class=\"sc-f98b1ad2-0 gXmhTb\">What are the costs of school meals?<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<ul class=\"sc-6f869981-0 diUlgm\">\n<li class=\"sc-734a601e-0 cRgahm\">Pre-school &#8211; \u00a33.00<\/li>\n<li class=\"sc-734a601e-0 cRgahm\">Primary \u00a33.10<\/li>\n<li class=\"sc-734a601e-0 cRgahm\">Post-Primary 19.25% increase<\/li>\n<li class=\"sc-734a601e-0 cRgahm\">Special school \u00a33.10<\/li>\n<li class=\"sc-734a601e-0 cRgahm\">Adult meal \u00a33.99<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">In December, trade unions took part in a protest against an increase in the price of school dinners and other savings plans announced by the EA.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><h2 class=\"sc-f98b1ad2-0 gXmhTb\">What has the EA said?<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<div data-component=\"text-block\" class=\"sc-3b6b161a-0 dPVOKT\">\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">About 210,000 school meals are eaten every day, although about 90,000 pupils are entitled to free school meals.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">The EA said that the cost of a school dinner had not risen since 2017\/18 while inflation had increased by around 35% in that time.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">They said that each school meal costs an average of \u00a34.28 to produce.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">The EA has said it is facing a funding gap of \u00a3300m and, unlike in previous years, does not expect additional in-year money to address the shortfall.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">The authority had previously told school principals to restrict the appointment of new staff and limit the use of substitute teachers to save money.<\/p>\n<p class=\"sc-9a00e533-0 eZyhnA\">But the new savings measures will directly affect families and some of the things they pay for at school.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\" async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<!-- Africa tv video display -->\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-1669381584671856\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"3579572842\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"auto\"\r\n     data-full-width-responsive=\"true\"><\/ins>\r\n<script data-jetpack-boost=\"ignore\">\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n#School #meals #price #increase #acutely #affect #children #poverty<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fiona Murrayand Barry O&#8217;Connor,BBC News NI BBC Chris Quinn has called for a &#8220;fundamental rethink&#8221; of school meal provisions School&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":46639,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-46638","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mzansi"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46638","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=46638"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46638\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46640,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/46638\/revisions\/46640"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/46639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=46638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/eduzim.co.zw\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=46638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}