Starting Monday, parents in Britain will face a considerable increase in school dinner prices for their children. Experts predict that this move will deprive thousands of less privileged students from getting their share of healthy meals. In some schools, the cost will go up by 17%, with prices reaching over £2.60 in extreme cases. The rise in prices is due to the growing expense of food and the government removing protection for subsidies that kept prices low in previous years. The grant for school dinners will lose its protection from Monday and can be used by schools or local councils to cover other expenses. More than 30 local councils intend to raise the prices in the coming months, according to The Observer. Renowned chef and food activist, Jamie Oliver, expressed his hope that the government will persist in prioritizing "quality school food and the integral support and training of kitchen staff." He called any compromise on a child’s right to healthy school food "child abuse on an unimaginable scale."

Several local councils have already decided on the rise in prices. Doncaster council will escalate the cost of lunch by 17% tomorrow up to £2.10. Similarly, Lewisham will raise prices by 14% up to £1.60 by the end of the month, and Blackpool will increase the cost by 7% in the upcoming academic year. Bolton council will abandon the popular £1-a-meal policy in September and increase the price to £1.50 by January next year. Schools that have taken over from local councils in providing meals to students will also increase their prices. The council in Poole announced that the average price charged by schools would go up by around 11p to £2.50 in this financial year. In Somerset, some schools have already raised prices to £2.60 and may go up further, with six meal services closing due to lack of financial viability. It is feared that more schools will stop providing hot meals. Wendy Green, the council’s transforming school food project manager, stated her concern for rural schools where the delivery expense could be an added financial burden. She said prices were variable, but most primary schools charged between £2.25 and £2.60 for a two-course meal per child, which was a lot of money for families with two or three children. She also added that if parents were unwilling to pay the higher meal prices, the services would become unviable due to low uptake.

According to research from Schools Food Trust, children are sensitive to price changes when it comes to deciding whether to eat school meals. A commissioned paper in 2009 suggested that a rise in the cost of a school meal results in a fall in take-up. Carmel McConnell, from child nutrition charity Magic Breakfasts, expressed her anxiety about increasing malnutrition in schools and feared it could lead to cases of scurvy and other conditions.

Remarkably, research by academics at Oxford and Essex universities showed that children who consumed Jamie Oliver’s healthy school meals – promoted six years ago – experienced an enormous improvement in test results. The nutritious meals were more effective in raising standards of English in primary schools than the government’s daily literacy hour. Research showed that there was a 4.5% increase in English SATs results in the first schools where children replaced unhealthy meals with nutritious ones. This compared to a 3.2% rise linked to the introduction of structured daily literacy lessons. Pupils also took fewer days off sick.

In 2005, Jamie Oliver led the campaign to improve school dinners. His Jamie’s School Dinners series in 2005 followed by Feed Me Better campaign inspired many schools to scrap Turkey Twizzlers and chips, and opt for nutrient-rich foods like fish and broccoli.

The price rise will impact any child whose parents together earn more than £16,000 a year, the threshold for getting a free school meal. The Department for Education defended the move stating that "they make no apologies for giving headteachers complete freedom over their budgets – they know what’s best for their pupils." Nonetheless, parents’ concern heightened, and experts warned of the potential dangers of this move.

After having a productive meeting with Michael Gove before the holiday season, I fervently hope he prioritizes the continued investment in providing high-quality meals for schoolchildren. It is equally crucial that kitchen staff are supported and trained where necessary to ensure the seamless provision of nutritious food.

Having comprehensive food education in schools is paramount in promoting healthy eating habits among students. Although it was made mandatory for secondary school students back in 2008, it is only set to be implemented in schools this coming September. However, it has been recently threatened to be excluded entirely from the curriculum.

The long-term health, happiness, and productivity of the future generation of our nation would be at risk if we compromise on their right to a nutritious school lunch and education on food origin, content, and its impact on their body. On a colossal level, depriving them of such necessities would be nothing short of child abuse.

I commend the Labour party for pioneering the school food revolution. I firmly believe that the current government should undertake measures to build on what their predecessors had started.