Written question asked by Shailesh Vara (Conservative) on Tuesday, 2 March 2010, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 8 March 2010. It was answered by Lord Coaker (Labour) on Monday, 8 March 2010 on behalf of the Department for Children, Schools and Families.

Free School Meals

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what recent assessment he has made of the level of educational attainment of pupils eligible to receive free school meals; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: Long term trends show that the achievement of pupils eligible for free school meals is rising, and that gaps in attainment between those pupils and their more affluent peers are narrowing. To give just one example, between 2002 and 2009, the percentage of free school meals pupils achieving the equivalent of five or more good GCSEs rose by 25.9 percentage points (from 23 per cent. to 48.9 per cent.), in comparison with a 19.1 percentage point rise for non-free school meals pupils.

Secondary information