Brendan Griffin (Kerry, Fine Gael)
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207. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the total number of primary and secondary schools in Kerry approved for the hot school meals programme; the total number actively in receipt of hot meals at this point; the total number of schools approved but not yet commenced; the total number of schools not approved yet; the number of children benefitting from the programme nationwide; her plans for further expansion of the programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24524/24]

Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael)
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The objective of the School Meals Programme is to provide regular, nutritious food to children to support them in taking full advantage of the education provided to them. The programme is an important component of policies to encourage school attendance and extra educational achievement. Following the expansion of the programme in recent years, some 2,600 schools and organisations, covering 443,000 children are now eligible for funding.

The Hot School Meal option of the programme was introduced in 2019 and is currently solely available to primary schools. Since my appointment as Minister for Social Protection, I have increased the number of schools with access to the Hot School Meal option and the programme has grown significantly in recent years with over 2,000 primary schools now eligible to receive a hot meal. This is a very positive outcome considering that the scheme involved just 30 schools at pilot stage when I started expanding it.

I am committed to continuing to expand the School Meals Programme and building further on the significant extension of the programme that has taken place in recent years. In this regard, I have rolled out hot school meals to all DEIS primary schools from September 2023.

As part of this significant expansion plan, all remaining non-DEIS primary schools were contacted last year and requested to submit an expression of interest form if their school is interested in commencing the provision of hot school meals. Expressions of interests were received from over 900 primary schools in respect of 150,000 children who were then invited to participate in the programme from 8^th April 2024 and all of the schools who submitted completed applications have been awarded funding.

There are currently 83 primary schools eligible for hot school meals in Co. Kerry. Of these 69 are currently in receipt of hot school meals with 14 schools yet to apply.

Nationally a total of 316,046 children are eligible for hot school meals with 260,372 children now benefitting from the scheme. There are 8,984 children in Co. Kerry currently benefitting from hot school meals.

My Department has now contacted the remaining primary schools who have not yet joined the Hot School Meals scheme asking them to submit expressions of interest to receive hot meals from September 2024. Of these schools 40 out of the 52 schools in Co. Kerry have submitted an expression of interest.

My ambition is that every primary school child in the country will be receiving a hot meal in 2025. This is well ahead of our original target to make hot meals universal in primary schools by 2030.

I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.