RESOLVED that the following motion be agreed:
Council notes:
1. Children in years 3 and above cannot receive free school meals
(FSMs) if their parents are migrants with leave to remain subject to a “no
recourse to public fund” (NRPF) condition, or are undocumented.
2. These are often some of the poorest and most vulnerable children in
schools. Across the country, many report going hungry; where meals are
provided, parents could receive bills they cannot afford to pay.
3. Lewisham schools and many other schools across the country use
their discretion to ensure that children do not go hungry, but without any extra
funds to meet the costs.
4. North East London Migrant Action (NELMA), with the support in the
labour and trade union movements of Labour Campaign for Free Movement
(LCFM), are campaigning for all children who need them to receive FSMs and
to end NRPF policies.
Council believes:
1. No child should go hungry in school because of their parents’
immigration status.
2. We oppose the inhumanity and racism of such “hostile environment”
policies.
3. Free school meals should be a basic right for ALL children who need
them
4. NRPF policies undermine all workers: when migrant workers are afraid
that losing their job means their children will go hungry or they will have no
social security to fall back on, they are more vulnerable to mistreatment by
exploitative employers, undermining pay and conditions for all of us.
Council resolves to:
1. Send our support to NELMA and LCFM for the campaign to repeal this
and all the discriminatory NRPF-related policies, and for local authorities to
meet the need for FSMs in the interim.
2. Lobby government to this end to provide the funding for children on
FSM.
3. Continue to work with Lewisham Schools to ensure that NRPF children
that would otherwise be entitled to FSM are provided with them and to
consider issuing guidance to schools, if necessary, until the Government fund
local authorities to provide such meals.