Meals & More has been campaigning to persuade the new Labour Government to commit to ongoing funding of the Holiday Activities and Food Programme (HAF).
The event was attended by 42 MPs and staff including chair of the APPG for School Food Sharon Hodgson. MPs heard about the need to extend the scope of HAF to include all children in lower income households, not just those receiving free school meals.
Hodgson said: “It was lovely to meet with Meals & More in parliament to call for more funding towards helping children facing food poverty.”
The event was held following a letter that Meals & More wrote to the Government prior to the Autumn Budget calling for HAF programme funding to continue after the initial three-year funding settlement expires.
Meals & More wants to see the programme index-linked to inflation as well as extending the scope to include all children in households that have below average resources, not just those eligible for free school meals.
Peter McGrath, operations director for Meals & More, added: “With the new Government, we have a once in a generation opportunity to create a better future. We are determined to keep doing what we can to ensure that HAF is a part of this Government’s legacy.
“As a charity our funds are limited and we can only do so much. We need the country’s leaders to stand up for what’s right and it was reassuring to see so many MPs at the event learning more about this important subject that impacts the lives of so many young people.”