AVRUPA TIMES-Labour’s free breakfast clubs to reach more children in Enfield as Enfield Labour calls on local schools to join programmeMore parents in Enfield could save up to £450 and 95 hours per year as Labour’s free breakfast club set to target less well off areas. Applications open today for the first 500 to start in April 2026. To expand the variety of healthy breakfast options at clubs, funding rate to rise.Half a million more children nationwide will benefit from Best Start free breakfast clubs from April, as Cllr Ergin Erbil calls on local schools to sign up.
Applications open today for the next wave of 500 schools to benefit from the programme, as Labour invests £80 million in the right places to give every child the best start in life – recognising that a healthy, well-educated population is essential for a thriving economy
The move is the latest step in Labour’s plan for national renewal, offering help immediately to working parents juggling childcare by giving them back up to 95 hours of time – over two and a half working weeks each year. That's money back in pockets and time back in busy lives, helping families get by whilst ensuring children are ready to learn and succeed.
By prioritising schools with the highest proportion of pupils on free school meals the rollout ensures the real-life impact of free breakfast clubs goes first to where it is most needed.
As a crucial part of the Plan for Change, a further 1,500 schools will start in September 2026, with applications due to open in January, altogether helping to extend benefits to over 200,000 more underprivileged children in a little over a year of the programme launching
Cllr Ergin Erbil, leader of Enfield Council said:
“Breakfast Clubs make a huge difference to hard-pressed families all over Enfield. Good for kids, good for families, good for bank balances, and extra time at the start of the day. Breakfast Clubs mean children have better life chances and families are better off.
“It’s brilliant to see the Labour Government making a clear choice to support hardworking families who need it. This is the change people in Enfield voted for and want to see.
“II want all eligible schools in Enfield to apply - and I’ll be doing everything I can to support them.”
Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson said:
“This is national renewal in action - breaking down barriers so every child gets the best start in life, regardless of their background.
“By rolling out free breakfast clubs to half a million more children, we're not just filling empty stomachs, we're supercharging the nation’s morning routines.
“This is about building a country where background doesn’t mean destiny, where we invest in our children's futures, and where we deliver the real change working families desperately need.”
Labour has increased the per child funding rate has for mainstream schools, making good on its commitment to roll out clubs with a variety of healthy meals.
Schools will also receive a guaranteed £25 a day to cover staffing and admin so every type of school can easily deliver a breakfast club. For an average school with 50% take up, the total funding package has increased by 28%.
It builds on consistent, tough choices to prioritise investment into to help families with the cost of living such as expanding free school meals to every family on Universal Credit, lifting 100,000 children out of poverty, and introducing 30 hours free childcare to working parents, saving them up to £7,500 per year.