I work in Tottenham, as Assistant Headteacher at Holy Trinity CE School. My school is in a deprived area of London and I am interested in setting up a School meals Safety Net Bursary for children of families with no recourse for public funds to have a school lunch when their parents cannot pay for dinner money.
It seems crazy that children, not many miles from each other, have such different lives but sadly this is very much the case. I know that all children in Islington have free school meals (unlike Haringey) and I am keen to address this injustice; by setting up this bursary, any families (for various reasons) that cannot apply for free school lunch would be ‘caught’ by the safety net and their children's lunch money would be paid at times of real financial hardship.
However, we do need donations; it would cost £2.50 x 190 = £475 for one child’s safety net for a year and we were hoping that you may want to help. I hope you would agree that this is a worthwhile and meaningful idea that could change a child’s life and their education experience and their daily happiness.
For example a child called Elizabeth who is 7 yrs old (I know her family and taught her siblings) has to have a cheese sandwich for lunch on many occasions because her dinner money cannot be paid and her family have no recourse to public funds (free school meals). Myself and my sister have donated one year of school dinner money for the fund. Together we are stronger.
Thank you
Lisa Miles