Introduction and Main Findings
This statistical publication notice provides results of the latest annual survey of school meals. The information was collected in early 2009 from all publicly funded schools in Scotland.
This statistics publication also includes information about total local authority expenditure on meals during the year 2007-08, the financial year prior to the survey.
Full findings on the trial of free school meals for all pupils in P1-P3 in five local authorities (East Ayrshire, Fife, Glasgow, Scottish Borders and West Dunbartonshire) held in 2007/08 are now available 1. The trial inflated meal uptake rates in primary schools in these areas in 2007/08, complicating comparison in these areas across the last three years of school meal survey figures (see background note 6). Where comparison over time of national uptake rates is necessary, these have also been provided on the basis of non-trial authorities only.
The main findings for 2009 are:
School meals (free or paid for)
- Of those pupils present on the survey day, 45.1 per cent took a meal supplied by the school, compared to 47.1 per cent in 2008. When trial authorities were excluded, 44.2 per cent took a meal in 2009, compared to 45.1 per cent in 2008 (Table 3).
- Of pupils present on the survey day in primary schools, 48.9 per cent took a meal in 2009, compared with 49.6 per cent in 2008 (including trial authorities). When trial authorities were excluded, 48.2 per cent took a meal in 2009 compared to 46.4 per cent in 2008 (Table 3).
- The percentage present taking meals in secondary schools has decreased from 42.9 in 2008 to 39.2 in 2009 (Table 3).
Free school meals
- The percentage of pupils registered for free school meals was 15.2 per cent, marginally down from 15.4 per cent in 2008 (Table 1). A further 5,154 pupils were identified by 24 local authorities as being entitled to free school meals, though local authorities continue to vary widely in their ability to identify pupils who are entitled but have not registered their entitlement.
- Of those registered for free school meals and present on the day of the survey, 82.2 per cent took a free school meal on the survey day, down from 82.7 per cent in 2008 (Table 2).
- Fifty-six per cent of primary schools had an anonymised system for free school meals receipt, up from 51 per cent in 2008 (Tables 20). Ninety per cent of secondary schools had such systems, up from 82 per cent in 2008 (Table 21).
Healthy eating
- All local authority primary schools participate in the Free Fruit in Schools scheme and provide free fresh fruit to P1 and P2 pupils. Fifty-one per cent of schools reported also having extended the free fruit scheme in some way, such as to pupils in other stages or by providing it more often, down from 55 per cent in 2008. Schools are required to provide free drinking water on the premises at all times. Ninety-three per cent of all schools had free drinking water available to pupils and staff at all times, down from 97 per cent in 2008. (Tables 20, 21 and 22).
- Thirty-six per cent of all schools provided a breakfast club service to pupils, down from 38 per cent in 2008. Provision of breakfast clubs was more common in those schools with higher rates of deprivation (Table 7).
Annual data from previous financial year
- Overall in 2007-08, local authorities spent £129 million preparing 54.2 million meals, compared to £119 million preparing 53.5 million meals in 2006-07 (Table 25). When the five trial authorities are excluded, local authorities spent £93 million preparing 39.6 million meals in 2007-08, compared to £86 million preparing 39.3 million meals in 2006-07 (see background note 6). A further £3.1 million was spent on school milk programmes (Table 27).
- The total number of free meals taken in 2007-08 was 16.5 million, compared to 15.7 million in 2006-07 (table 25). When trial authorities are excluded, the total number of free meals taken in 2007-08 was 9.4 million, compared to 10.0 million in 2006-07 (see background note 6).