Continuation Of School Lunch Programme Welcomed, Needs Regular Evaluation

Confirmation that school lunch programme Ka Ora, Ka Ako will continue is welcome news for mokopuna, says Chief Children’s Commissioner Dr Claire Achmad.

The Government has confirmed today that the new iteration of the programme will provide a variety of hot and cold meals to ākonga already receiving them at school. The programme will also extend to low-equity community-based early learning services.

“I’m very pleased to see this commitment to the Ka Ora, Ka Ako | Food in Schools programme made by the Government today,” says Dr Achmad.

“There has been much discussion about what the future of the programme could look like, so it’s good to see the importance of healthy food for children acknowledged, with a commitment to fund it for another two years, and a promise that the meals will be nutritious.”

Dr Achmad acknowledges the many mokopuna, whānau, kura and school leaders who have spoken about the importance of the programme, and says it’s been heartening to see the strong public support too. She notes that independent evaluations of Ka Ora, Ka Ako, together with broader evidence, show that nutritious school meals effectively boost children’s physical and mental health and help to address food insecurity.

“We know that many families are struggling right now with the cost of living, and reliance on food banks is really high.

“We also know that hunger impacts on the ability of children to learn and affects their ability to concentrate at school, and that children with reduced nutrient intake are more likely to experience poor health, obesity and malnutrition, as well as other challenges to their physical and mental development,” she says.

The fact that a significant proportion of mokopuna in Aotearoa New Zealand experience food insecurity and its link with poor health and education outcomes was an issue of serious concern highlighted by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in its most recent recommendations to the New Zealand Government.

Dr Achmad says that Ka Ora, Ka Ako has proven to have had significant health and learning benefits for students across different age groups, and supported an overall better quality of life, with our most under-served mokopuna benefitting the most.

“It has also helped to reduce financial stress on whānau, create calmer school environments, and support engagement. Providing food in schools is a practical way that we can help address poverty and inequity affecting families, whānau and their mokopuna.

“I visited Titahi Bay Intermediate earlier this year to see first-hand the importance of every child in the school being able to have a free, healthy lunch – and seconds if they’re still hungry.

“The principal told me that hot lunches made a huge difference to student wellbeing and motivation at the school, and I heard directly from the mokopuna that their lunches made a real difference for them, and supported them in their learning. Since then, I’ve seen the positive value of providing free, nutritious school lunches in other schools and kura I have visited. While I am keen to learn more how the reshaped programme will work in practice, I’m pleased that every mokopuna who currently receives a free school lunch will have this continue over the coming two years, and that more will be reached through early-learning spaces,” she says.

Earlier this year, Dr Achmad advocated that any changes to the Ka Ora, Ka Ako programme must be made in genuine partnership with children, their schools and their whānau.

“I’m still keen to understand more about how children’s views have been factored into the decision-making about these changes, whether they were able to test the menus, and how schools, kura, iwi and hapū have been consulted. I’ll be meeting with the Ministry of Education soon to learn more about this. I acknowledge that this is a different model of delivering the programme, and that there will be many questions from communities to be worked through, and it will be important for the Ministry of Education to work in partnership to do this.

“I’m calling on the Government to ensure that it factors in regular review points along the way as Ka Ora, Ka Ako continues, to understand how it is working for children, young people, whānau, schools, kura and communities, directly informed by their views and voices. I encourage that this includes understanding how this new iteration of the programme compares with the previous model, and over time I would like to see free school lunches being embedded in how our education system works, on an enduring basis,” she says.

Editor’s notes

Mana Mokopuna – Children and Young People’s Commission is an Independent Crown Entity, and is the independent advocate for all children and young people in Aotearoa New Zealand. The Chief Children’s Commissioner is the full-time, visible advocate for all children and young people, and is the Chair of the Mana Mokopuna Board.

Mana Mokopuna is one of the three organisations making up the oversight of oranga tamariki system, alongside Aroturuki Tamariki – Independent Children’s Monitor, and the Ombudsman.

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