NEW changes to school meals will see primary and secondary pupils across the city benefit from a mid-morning snack.

Council bosses said the rollout of the additional food is designed to both boost health and help families cut down slightly on household bills.

Running from October to March 2022, the scheme will give fruit to all primary children mid-morning and a hot snack in secondary schools for all young people eligible for free school meals.

Councillor Chris Cunningham, City Convener of Education, Skills and Early Years, said: “This programme is the ideal way to offer fresh fruit to all primary pupils and a hot and healthy option mid-morning to young people in our secondary schools during the autumn and winter months when we all need a bit extra to get us through the day’s work.

“I know that it will also be a great help to our families and potentially free up some money towards other household bills."

The programme will be rolled out across all primary, secondary and ASL schools in Glasgow through a one-off investment from the council and Scottish Government covid recovery funding.

This is in addition to all primary pupils – P1 to P7 – receiving universal free school meals by August next year.

The move, to provide fruit to all primary children mid-morning and a hot snack in secondary schools to all young people eligible for free school meals will see more than 53,000 Glasgow pupils benefit.

Around 11,000 high school pupils will receive the hot snack while 42,000 primary pupils will have mid-morning fresh fruit.

The programme is part of the council’s overall covid recovery plans in the wake of the pandemic but also complements Glasgow’s City Food plan and climate emergency and sustainability proposal to source local providers to supply produce for school menus.

Fruit will be delivered to primary schools on a Tuesday and Thursday with the excess fruit being able to be used throughout the week.

Chris added: “We’ve long since advocated the benefits of healthy school meals to our families and what we are now looking at is how this can fit with the Glasgow City Food Plan goals to provide locally produced provisions in our schools.

“It might be that we can look at community food growing initiatives to provide the fruit for primary schools which will in turn help our carbon footprint.”