Pat Carey (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 406: To ask the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if his Department administers a grant scheme to enable schools to make a payment to an appropriate supervisor to assist with the operation of a school breakfast club; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [35343/05]

Séamus Brennan (Dublin South, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The school meals programme operated by my Department gives funding towards the provision of food services for disadvantaged school children through two schemes. The first is the statutory urban school meals scheme, currently operated by 35 local authorities, which provides food services to primary schools. The Department jointly funds the food costs with these local authorities, who also manage and fund the administration of the scheme.

The second is the school meals local projects scheme. Under this scheme my Department provides funding to participating schools and voluntary community groups in both urban and rural areas for specific school meals projects. This has recently been expanded to include pre-schools that are community based and which operate on a not-for-profit basis.

The school meals programme covers the cost of food only and does not provide funding for any staff costs. The programme is based on a partnership approach, under which my Department relieves schools and parents' groups of the burden of raising finance. This enables the schools, sometimes with voluntary input from parents, to concentrate their efforts on service provision. Schools in the scheme are reimbursed by my Department at set per capita rates for breakfasts, light meals or dinners they provide. Participating schools manage to organise a very good meals service for their pupils within the rates payable. A number of new schools have opted into the scheme this year under the existing terms.

My Department is keeping the operation and take-up of the scheme under review, and is developing new measures to promote the scheme at local level particularly for schools in areas designated as disadvantaged.