Will the Minister provide an estimate of the costs that would be required to provide universal free school meals over the christmas break?
Answered by Minister for Education and the Welsh Language | Answered on 08/12/2023
The Welsh Government has always been clear that extending free school meals into the school holidays was a time-limited crisis intervention in response to the pandemic. We recently considered whether it would be possible to reinstate funding for holiday free school meal provision during October half term and subsequent school holidays. Unfortunately, due to the significant financial pressures facing the Welsh budget, provision of free school meals during the holidays has ceased indefinitely.