Food for thought: How pupils in Cork benefit from school meals

The principals at two primary schools describe the health, social, and educational benefits their young charges are enjoying
Food for thought: How pupils in Cork benefit from school meals

Greenmount NS principal Finbarr Hurley and secretary Ber Long. 'School lunches are a great leveller,' Mr Hurley says. 'Every child is equal, they all get the same, high-quality, healthy lunch.' Picture: Jim Coughlan

Children’s life chances are being improved by a programme which tackles food poverty suffered by families throughout Cork City and nationally.

Teachers report that students are happier, calmer, more focused, and ready to learn after they’ve eaten a meal in school. Research also backs up their assertions.

Thirty-one schools are currently availing of the school meals programme funded by Cork City Council and the Department of Social Protection. Last year, €149,907 was spent on the programme.

During the pandemic, more than 8,000 children and their families continued to receive food through their schools even when they were closed for teaching. Outside of the school meals programme, an additional 3,500 households received food hampers from Cork City Council in response to the pandemic.

Sandwiches, fresh fruit, and yoghurt are among the items available to pupils at Greenmount NS in Cork and other schools nationwide. Picture: Denis Minihane
Sandwiches, fresh fruit, and yoghurt are among the items available to pupils at Greenmount NS in Cork and other schools nationwide. Picture: Denis Minihane

Nationally, the school meals programme helps fund food for some 1,506 schools and organisations, benefitting 230,000 children.  

Finbarr Hurley, principal of Greenmount National School in Cork said that food poverty is “certainly an issue” for some families in Cork.

“And the issue was amplified during the pandemic. A lot of parents were out of work,” Mr Hurley said. “The high take-up of food hampers over lockdown was a good indication of the need that was out there.” 

Greenmount National School gets grants from both Cork City Council and the Department of Social Protection to provide school meals to pupils. 

Cork City Council’s “hugely important” grant usually funds the school’s Breakfast Club. That has been suspended since Covid-19, as it would require children from different bubbles mixing for more than 30 minutes at a time.

So that money has been temporarily diverted to supplement the school lunches, which have been “beefed up” with more high-quality foods, Mr Hurley said.

A selection of sandwiches, fresh fruit, yoghurt, rice cakes, and other foods are now available to Greenmount’s pupils to sustain them through the day.

“Every child is now guaranteed a very healthy and substantial school lunch,” Mr Hurley said: 

"This has been very valuable for families, whether they are working or not, because it’s great to know that your child will be fed at school that day. And school lunches are a great leveller. Every child is equal, they all get the same, high-quality, healthy lunch. 

"There’s no comparing lunchboxes and, in non-Covid times, having the breakfast club before school was hugely beneficial. Teachers reported that the children arrived in class in a better mood, more focused and ready to learn.

Social benefits of school breakfast club

“Breakfast club feeds a child but it also allows the child that wake-up period, where they can communicate with their peers or staff, express any concerns about homework, or anything else. They can gently arrive at school rather than rushing to the school gate and into class. It’s a softer entry. There are health benefits but also social benefits.

“And it can help if a child is a little anxious coming into school. They have mealtime first, and mealtime is associated with chatting and connecting. 

We make it like a family meal. Everyone helps to lay the table, chats to the person next to them, helps clean up, minds their manners, says please and thank you. So children are starting the day with a healthy and calm breakfast.

"Not every family may be able to give them that because mornings can be chaotic for families.” 

Mr Hurley said that school meals are also important because they foster strong relationships between students and staff, so if the child has any concerns about their schoolwork they can come to that trusted staff member quickly before those concerns become larger problems.

While schools were closed during the pandemic, staff at Greenmount NS volunteered to pack and organise food hampers for struggling families which were delivered by volunteers from the local GAA club.

“It was a real community effort. People really wanted to help each other get through lockdown. The school became very central in the community,” Mr Hurley said.

Installing water fountains in the classrooms has also improved student behaviour in the school, as children have been better hydrated, and their concentration and overall demeanour have improved, he said.

Principal Finbarr Hurley credits school secretary Ber Long (right) as well as caretaker Denis Harrington and the school completion staff for the smooth running of the breakfast club at Greenmount National School. Picture: Jim Coughlan
Principal Finbarr Hurley credits school secretary Ber Long (right) as well as caretaker Denis Harrington and the school completion staff for the smooth running of the breakfast club at Greenmount National School. Picture: Jim Coughlan

He said that Cork City Council’s grant for school meals has had “a huge impact”: "The need is there and the money has such a positive and direct impact on the students.

I’d love to see other schools adopting the Breakfast Club, even in schools that are not disadvantaged. It does not just provide food but also has social and emotional benefits.

“Ber Long, the school secretary has been the engine of the breakfast club, with our caretaker Denis Harrington, and the school completion staff. They make it all run so smoothly.” 

'Getting children out the door is a heroic deed'

'Cork City Council has always ring-fenced the funding for school meals,' says Íde Ní Dhubháin, principal of Gaelscoil Mhachan in Cork: 'Even through the recessions, through severe unemployment, cutbacks, this funding has never been an issue.' Picture: Larry Cummins
'Cork City Council has always ring-fenced the funding for school meals,' says Íde Ní Dhubháin, principal of Gaelscoil Mhachan in Cork: 'Even through the recessions, through severe unemployment, cutbacks, this funding has never been an issue.' Picture: Larry Cummins

Íde Ní Dhubháin is the principal at Gaelscoil Mhachan, Avenue de Rennes, Mahon, Blackrock. She said school meals also have an important educational function: 

"It opens the idea of healthy lunches and snacks to the children. They see their peers eating it. They see the healthy food there always as an option for them. The scheme enables schools to provide that option and let children see that healthy choices are good choices. 

"A lot of the funding from Cork City Council goes toward the milk scheme, which is very important to children’s growth and development. Especially nowadays when children are always going for drinks like Coke. 

"It’s important that children get to taste different foods. If they don’t see these things they can’t choose them. But if they do, it can become part of their healthy living. And this funding enables schools to promote that. It has huge ramifications for children." 

Ms Ní Dhubháin said that she sees definite improvements in children’s concentration, behaviour, and mood when they are well fed.

"Regardless of any household situation, all our lives are extremely busy and stressful and getting children out the door to school in any context is a heroic deed in itself. And sometimes breakfasts and meals can be missed. So to literally fill that gap once children come into school enables them to concentrate better on their work, to feel that there is that source there for them in school if they forgot breakfast or didn’t bring lunch with them.

"For us to have that funding to literally fill the gap is a great asset both for the school and for children. And for the parent, they know that their child will not be hungry in the school setting.

"Cork City Council has always ring-fenced the funding for school meals. It’s a great commitment. Even through the recessions, through severe unemployment, cutbacks, this funding has never been an issue."

Food funding for disadvantaged school children is available nationally through two schemes: The urban school meals scheme and the school meals (local projects) scheme.  

The urban school meals scheme for primary schools is operated and administered by local authorities and is part-financed by the Department of Social Protection.  

A total of 44,095 students in 301 primary schools benefit from the urban school meals scheme, and 188 of these schools also benefit from the local projects scheme.

A budget of €65.1m has been provided for the school meals programme in 2021. 

Demand has remained consistent for the schools meals programme. In recent years, entry to the school meals scheme has been confined to Deis schools, in addition to schools identified as having levels of concentrated disadvantage that would benefit from access to the programme. 

The Roadmap for Social Inclusion 2020-2025, which was published in January 2020, included a commitment to develop a comprehensive programme of work to further explore the drivers of food poverty and to identify mitigating actions.  This commitment is to be delivered by a number of government departments working in collaboration. 

In March 2021, Joe O’Brien, Minister of State with responsibility for social inclusion in the Department of Social Protection, announced his intention to establish a working group to tackle the issue of food poverty in accordance with this commitment.

Government departments and charities work together 

This working group has since been established. Its membership consists of the Departments of Agriculture, Food and the Marine; Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth; Education; Health; Rural and Community Development; and Social Protection. The Society of St Vincent de Paul, Crosscare, and the Children’s Rights Alliance are also members of this group. The group has met twice — in June and July this year — with a third meeting due to take place in the coming weeks.

The group will examine the current drivers of food poverty and develop recommendations which will contribute to the implementation of the roadmap commitment.

Food poverty is defined as not having access to healthy, nutritious food every day. Despite Ireland's wealth, the Department of Social Protection estimates that one in eight people live in food poverty.

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