Thousands of children in the North West can’t access free school meals due to not meeting the criteria to be eligible.
It’s all been revealed as part of a shocking new study.
The new analysis, which has been carried out by Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) and Greater Manchester Poverty Action (GMPA), has discovered that every North West local authority has at least 1,500 school-aged children in poverty who are not eligible for free school meals because the qualifying criteria for them is “so restrictive”.
Here in Greater Manchester alone, every one of our region’s 10 boroughs has more than 3,000 children unable to access the crucial service.
Manchester is the local Council with the highest number, at 10,500 eligible children.
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Thousands of North West children can’t get free school meals due to ‘restrictive’ criteria / gov.uk
The next highest borough is Bolton at 5,500, with Oldham following close behind at 5,000, and Salford, Rochdale, and Wigan following that at 4,000, while at the other end of the spectrum, Stockport and Bury are the boroughs with the lowest number at 3,000.
These disheartening statistics – which have been published in a full report this week – is exactly why researchers are urging local leaders to do all they can to ensure more little Mancs can get free lunches during school hours.
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While the report does highlight examples of local action being taken in the North West to increase access for families, it then crucially goes on to encouraging local leaders join national calls for expansion of free school meal entitlement.
However, researchers have conceded that it’s not just down to local Councils to make changes.
🚀 NOW LIVE: 'Free school meals in the North West'.
This report shows that every North West local authority has at least 1,500 school-age children in poverty who are not eligible for free school meals because the qualifying criteria is so restrictive.
— Greater Manchester Poverty Action (@GMPovertyAction) February 7, 2024
“The responsibility ultimately lies with the UK Government to expand provision of free school meals across the country to tackle classroom hunger,” CPAG and GMPA states in the report.
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Reflecting on the findings of the new analysis, and calling on the Government to do more, Graham Whitham, who is the CEO at GMPA, commented: “Child poverty rates have been rising in the North West for a number of years, and families across the region have been hit hard by soaring living costs.
“At a time when every penny counts, it cannot be right that 100,000 North West kids in poverty can’t claim free school meals.
“Low-income families are under immense financial pressure at the moment, and introducing universal free school meals would mean they have that bit extra to spend on other bills and household essentials.
“It would also improve their children’s nutrition, ultimately helping them to learn, engage and thrive.”
Featured Image – gov.uk
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NHS to start screening patient health records in a bid to catch one of the most ‘lethal’ cancers
Emily Sergeant
Hundreds of GP practices will begin combing patient records to offer urgent tests to those most at risk of one of the deadliest cancers.
It’s all in a bid to catch pancreatic cancer sooner rather than later.
Pancreatic cancer is the fifth most-common cause of cancer deaths in the UK each year, with only 7% of people living for five years or more after diagnosis.
Most people with pancreatic cancer only recognise symptoms when their disease is at a late stage, so this is why the NHS wants to reach out to people as early as possible through its new screening initiative so they can get the best treatment available to them.
GP teams are set to start scouring online patients records to identify people over 60 who have the key early warning signs of pancreatic cancer – including being recently diagnosed with diabetes and sudden weight loss, as it’s said that around half of those diagnosed with pancreatic cancer have been diagnosed with diabetes recently.
The symptoms of pancreatic cancer are usually not noticed until it’s at an advanced stage, so we need to find new ways to pick it up.
We’re working to seek people out who might be unwell without any symptoms, so we can provide people with the most effective treatment. https://t.co/6rlFVGN6UW
Even if a patient’s weight is not recorded, GP teams will reach out to patients to check they have not ‘unexpectedly slimmed down’ and offer them tests if they have new onset diabetes.
More than 300 GP practices across England will begin using the initiative – with dozens rolling it out now, and the rest due to be up and running in the autumn.
While GP teams already know the signs to look for, this new screening scheme provides almost £2 million in targeted funding to help practices reach out to those most at-risk and give patients the best chance of being diagnosed earlier.
NHS is starting to screen patient health records in a bid to catch one of the most ‘lethal’ cancers / Credit: RawPixel
When the practices taking part in the three-year pilot find the signs and symptoms they’re looking for, they will then contact patients and send them for urgent blood tests and CT scans to rule out cancer.
“Pancreatic cancer is responsible for so many deaths, because patients don’t usually notice symptoms until the cancer is at an advanced stage, which is why we need to find new ways to pick it up,” commented Professor Peter Johnson, who is the NHS’s National Clinical Director for Cancer.
Health Minister, Karin Smyth, added: “As someone who has faced cancer personally, I know all too well the fear that comes with a diagnosis and the precious value of catching it early.
“This targeted approach to identify people at risk of one of the most lethal cancers could give more people a fighting chance and spare the heartbreak of countless families.”
Featured Image – RDNE (via Pexels)
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Chester Zoo named one of England’s most popular tourist attractions with 1.9m visitors
Emily Sergeant
Congratulations are in order, yet again, for Chester Zoo… as this time it’s been named one of England’s most popular attractions.
Merely months after being named the UK’s best zoo for the second year running, thanks to receiving more than 11,000 ‘excellent’ reviews from TripAdvisor, Chester Zoo has now got itself another prestigious title, as a major VisitEngland (VE) report has ranked it the third most-visited ‘paid for’ attraction in England – and the most visited outside of London.
The national tourist board for England gathered information from a total of 1,373 attractions across the country, and ranked the UK’s biggest charity zoo as the third overall in terms of popularity, with a whopping 1.9 million visitors in 2024 alone.
The Tower of London took top spot with 2.9 million visitors, while the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew was second place with 2.3 million visitors.
When it comes to free attractions, on the other hand, it wad the British Museum that claimed the top spot with 6.5 million visitors, while the Natural History Museum (5.9 million visitors) took second place, and the Tate Modern (4.6 million visitors) got third.
So as you can see, the south and London in particular is a pretty dominating force in England’s tourism industry – which is why it’s even more impressive to see Chester Zoo ranked so highly.
The new VE title also comes after the zoo was recently given £4 million of lottery funding to help ‘transform’ the local environment and restore wildlife habitats across the Cheshire and wider North West region.
Not only that, but if course follows Chester Zoo’s unveiling of its new immersive experience named Heart of Africa, which is the the largest zoo habitat ever created in the UK and is home to 57 iconic African species.
Chester Zoo has been named one of England’s most popular tourist attractions with 1.9m visitors / Credit: Chester Zoo
“As a major international wildlife charity, everything we do is focused on supporting global conservation,” commented Chester Zoo’s Commercial Director, Dom Strange.
“Whether it’s caring for highly-threatened animals and plants, making scientific discoveries, influencing Government environmental policies, impacting the National Curriculum to better connect young people with nature, or our conservation efforts in around 20 countries, we’re fully committed to protecting endangered species for the future.
“But none of this would be possible without our visitors.
“Every person who comes to the zoo for a fun and inspiring day out is helping to fund our vital work, so we want to say a heartfelt thank you to everyone who has supported us and helped us to rank so highly in VisitEngland’s latest report.”
Emily Sergeant -
9th February 2024 
