1/2/2010

As the thousandth school in Wales started offering free breakfasts to pupils today Welsh Conservatives condemned the £8 million pound cost of the scheme.

Shadow Education Minister Paul Davies AM said: "In such a difficult financial climate this is money which could have been used elsewhere within the education system rather than subsidising be the responsibility of parents.

"We, of course, want to see children receive a healthy, balanced diet. But the growing expense of this scheme is something the Education Minister's much-publicised spending review should take a long, hard look at.�

Baden Powell Primary School in Tremorfa today became the 1000th school to participate in the Welsh Assembly Government’s Free Breakfast initiative and First Minister Carwyn Jones and Education Minister Leighton Andrews joined pupils at the school’s breakfast club to see how they were benefitting from the scheme and enjoying a healthy start to the day.

The Welsh Assembly Government makes funding available to provide free school breakfasts for primary schools throughout Wales. Around 66 per cent of all primary schools are now offering free breakfasts to their pupils.

Carwyn Jones said: “Our free breakfast scheme is thriving in Cardiff and across the rest of Wales. There are many advantages for schools choosing to make a commitment to offering children a free healthy breakfast such as providing children with a good start to the school day and helping improve their concentration. One Wales commits us to maintaining the programme of free school breakfasts and we look forward to even more schools taking up the scheme.�

Leighton Andrews said: “In providing free school breakfasts our aim is to ensure that our youngest children are given a flying start in life. Enjoying a nutritious breakfast can help improve children’s health and concentration. This can have a knock-on effect in the raising of standards of learning and attainment. Through our scheme we are also aiming to ensure that we curtail the practice of skipping breakfast so that children are ready to start the school day energised and ready to learn.�

But Shadow Minister Davies commented: "Ministers should ask themselves: 'Is this something we can now afford'? They should be investing in education, not toast and cornflakes.

"The task of government should be to encourage children to eat more healthily through education and encouragement as part of a balanced, properly funded curriculum.