Written question WQ86050

First and foremost, I would like to take this opportunity to thank all staff that are employed to work in our school kitchens across Wales. Without the skills and dedication of this workforce the universal offer could not be delivered.

We are not routinely collecting information from local authorities about how many additional catering staff are being employed to support the roll out of the universal primary free school meal policy. Local authorities have received a grant allocation which has been informed by the anticipated additional pupils they will have to feed and by applying a consistent unit rate per meal across Wales. Funding also includes an additional amount for any administration associated with the scheme and local authorities have the discretion to spend their grant allocations according to their locally identified needs in delivering this offer.

My officials have supported local authorities to plan for implementation of this commitment. Individual meetings have provided an opportunity to discuss local capability and challenges, including the type of meals to be provided, equipment and infrastructure required, staffing implications, and any specific areas of concern related to implementation of the offer. These discussions have indicated that, for the initial phase of roll out, staffing needs are being addressed by offering additional hours to current catering staff, recruiting to vacant positions, or recruiting to newly created posts.

We will continue to work together with local authorities throughout this process as we plan for the second year of delivery and staffing will be part of the ongoing conversations.

This work is being carried out as part of the Co-operation Agreement between the Welsh Government and Plaid Cymru. We have big ambitions for the provision of universal free school meals in Wales. It is a transformational intervention to raise the profile of healthy eating across the whole school, increase the range of food pupils eat, improve social skills and wellbeing at mealtimes, and lead to improvements to behaviour and attainment. In time it will also impact on local food supply and support the Welsh economy.

We have committed £260m to support the roll out of universal primary free school meals over three years.