Devon County Council is the first two-tier authority in the country to implement auto-enrolment to pupils whose family income makes them entitled to free school meals.
It’s meant that more than 1,000 pupils in Devon who were entitled to free school meals but not previously receiving them, are now getting free meals at school.
So, what’s just happened?
As of January 2025, the council was aware of around 20,000 pupils in Devon eligible and receiving benefit-related free school meals. Through this initiative, that figure has increased to around 21,064 pupils now receiving free school meals.
It’s long been a challenge for councils across the UK – how to increase uptake of free school meals to those who are entitled to them.
The benefits to having a nutritional meal each day are well documented. Children who eat balanced meals are better able to focus during lessons and retain information.
There’s also an advantage to schools, because for each pupil in receipt of free school meals, the school gets additional ‘pupil premium’ funding that it can use to provide additional support to their pupils.
So, Devon County Council, like other authorities, have argued for a change. They have said that rather than put the responsibility on families to apply for Free School Meals, pupils whose families meet the eligibility criteria – and that’s known through benefit take-up – should instead be auto-enrolled to receive the meals.
Effectively, instead of families having to opt-in to receive free school meals, pupils of entitled families are auto-enrolled, and they can choose to opt-out if they wish to.
The landscape will change again next September, when the Government has said it will extend eligibility for free school meals to all households receiving Universal Credit, regardless of income level. That change is expected to make several thousand more pupils in Devon eligible for free school meals.
Moira Marder is Chief Executive of the Ted Wragg Trust, which has 18 schools across Devon.
She says that Devon County Council’s initiative to implement auto-enrolment will make a fantastic change to young people’s lives, and their education.
“We’re proud to have supported Devon County Council to introduce this important policy which will truly transform the lives of young people across Devon,” she said.
“We know that when pupils are well nourished, they are better able to learn and succeed in the classroom. Auto-enrolment will make sure that administrative burdens are not a barrier to children accessing the support they need and this is crucial to our mission to transform lives.”
But these changes in Devon have also meant that schools will receive an additional £1.5 million at least in pupil premium funding.
“The additional Pupil Premium funding unlocked by this policy will enable us to offer more targeted interventions and extra support to these students, moving one step closer to breaking the unfair link between disadvantage, opportunity and outcomes. This will not just transform those children’s lives but also strengthen communities across Devon.”
Councillor Julian Brazil, Leader, and Cabinet Member with responsibility for education, said:
“Having a decent meal every day is vital to all young people. It’s extremely important for their education and learning. Children are more attentive, able to focus, and retain information when they’ve had a good meal.
“The problem with the system until now is that it’s relied on the families to apply. That requires them to know they qualify, While the application process itself has been quick and simple, the process has been a barrier for some.
“Now, families who we know are eligible for free school meals are automatically enrolled to receive them. They can then choose not to have them if they wish.
“Instantly, this initiative has highlighted over 1,000 pupils, who unbeknown to us were already eligible for free school meals, but weren’t taking them.
“And the more pupils in receipt of free school meals, the more the school receive in additional pupil premium funding.
“This is one of those initiatives that makes absolute sense; it’s good for pupils and it’s good for schools. I’m delighted with its success.”
