The food packages have replaced the £30 vouchers previously given to families
The government is facing intense criticism this morning after images shared online on Monday evening showed what low-income families are receiving as part of the free school meals scheme.
A Twitter user named @RoadsideMum shared the image of the food, with which she is expected to feed her family for 10 days, that she estimated to cost £5.22.
Under the free school meals scheme, which was extended by the government last year after a campaign by footballer Marcus Rashford, families are entitled to vouchers worth £30 to purchase food.
#FreeSchoolMeals bag for 10 days:
2 days jacket potato with beans
8 single cheese sandwiches2 days carrots
3 days apples
2 days soreen
3 days frubesSpare pasta & tomato. Will need mayo for pasta salad.
Issued instead of £30 vouchers. I could do more with £30 to be honest. pic.twitter.com/87LGUTHXEu
— Louisa Britain (@RoadsideMum) January 11, 2021
However, the quantity of food offered has led to claims that the company awarded the government contract is attempting to increase its profits while undersupplying the most vulnerable in society.
Multiple other examples of the food supplied, shared by Rashford from his Twitter account, show that a number of families around the country have received the same quantity of food in their packages.
3 days of food for 1 family…
Just not good enough. pic.twitter.com/Y7FJEFFAma— Marcus Rashford (@MarcusRashford) January 11, 2021
And another one…😔 pic.twitter.com/hCCFCxC5HL
— Marcus Rashford (@MarcusRashford) January 11, 2021
The company responsible for the packages is Chartwells, a private company owned by the Compass Group, the world’s largest catering provider which recorded profits of £1.88 billion in late 2019.
The chairman of Compass is Ian Meakins, whose time at trade services company Wolsley saw him oversee its relocation to tax friendly haven Switzerland.
Paul Walsh, Meakins’ predecessor at Compass, was a member of David Cameron’s business advisory group, and a donor to the Conservative party.
In response to the viral tweet, Chartwells responded, saying that the food on offer did not “reflect the specification of one of [their] hampers”, but it is far from the first time the firm has been accused of profiteering off hungry children.
Compass faced criticism at the beginning of the pandemic from a teacher in Bristol, who labelled their free school meals “shameful”. Costing £11 – the packages contained a loaf of bread, a portion of baking spread, a block of cheese, five pieces of fruit, five biscuits or cakes, five packs of crisps and two yoghurts.
The food was intended to last families for a week.
Thank you for bringing this to our attention, this does not reflect the specification of one of our hampers. Please can you DM us the details of the school that your child attends and we will investigate immediately.
— Chartwells Schools (@Chartwells_UK) January 11, 2021
In response, a Department for Education spokesperson said: “We are looking into this. We have clear guidelines and standards for food parcels, which we expect to be followed. Parcels should be nutritious and contain a varied range of food.”
We are looking into this.
We have clear guidelines and standards for food parcels, which we expect to be followed. Parcels should be nutritious and contain a varied range of food.https://t.co/ZBdJZqxdfK https://t.co/9sfxHPX9RJ
— Department for Education (@educationgovuk) January 11, 2021
When contacted by JOE, a spokesperson for Chartwells said:
“We take our responsibility to provide children with access to nutritious food very seriously. We have worked hard to produce food hampers at incredibly short notice during these challenging times.
“Our hampers follow the DofE specifications and contain a variety of ingredients to support families in providing meals throughout the week. In the majority of instances, we have received positive feedback.
“In this instance, the image on Twitter falls short of our hamper specification and we are keen to investigate with the relevant school so we can address any operational issues that may have arisen.”
