Council asked to drop school dinners debt ‘hunger’ policy

WREXHAM Council has been asked to reverse an “appalling” policy which, it is claimed, could see primary school children going hungry.

The local authority has written to parents across the county, telling them they must clear any outstanding debts on their children’s school dinner accounts by next month or they will not be served a meal.

It means that families will now be forced to pay for dinners in advance, according to a letter by the council’s catering manager.

However, Plaid Cymru councillor Carrie Harper said it should focus on feeding children first and collecting debts later.

Cllr Harper, who represents the Queensway area of Caia Park, which was previously named one of the top 10 most deprived areas in Wales, said: “This major policy change, as it’s being described by the council, means that children as young as five could now be left hungry in our schools due to dinner account debts.

“It’s appalling, particularly so given that the school meals service makes the council an annual profit of almost half a million pounds.

“I’m not aware of this issue being discussed by councillors. This new policy takes us in a very dark direction, the letter issued was also very blunt and has caused distress to parents who have contacted me.

“Yes, we need to address the issue of debt on these accounts but children going without food should not be the solution.”

Cllr Harper has now written to the Children’s Commissioner for Wales to seek advice on whether the new policy conflicts with the UN Convention on the Rights of a Child.

She has also contacted the head of the council’s housing and economy department, which manages the school meals service, to set out her concerns. The move has also been condemned by anti-poverty charity Turn2us, who said it could impact on children’s education.

But the authority said it had made the decision as the process of collecting school dinner debts was taking too long.

A spokesman for Wrexham council said: “In many instances debts run against school meal payments are often time-consuming to collect, and in some cases irrecoverable.

“As such, we have had to make this change in policy, in line with the system in our secondary schools.

“Any parents or guardians who may be concerned about existing debts are advised to contact the department, in line with the advice recommended in the letter sent to schools.”

We need to address the issue of debt but children going without food is not the solution CLLR CARRIE HARPER