The number of pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM) has risen to more than 2 million this academic year, new government data shows.
A total of 2,019,509 pupils are now known to be eligible, a rise of 82 per cent since 2017 when 1,106,633 pupils were recorded as able to claim, according to data released by the Department for Education this morning.
The numbers of pupils eligible rose by 6 per cent compared with last year when 1,897,449 were eligible.
Pupils in England are eligible for FSM if their parent or carer is entitled to certain benefits, such as Income Support or income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance.
Schools get extra funding - known as pupil premium - for each of their students on FSM, but not all students eligible for FSM claim them.
The percentage of state-funded primary pupils recorded as eligible for FSM this year has risen to almost a quarter (24 per cent), rising from 1,075,994 last year to 1,115,284 in 2022-23.
The number of state-funded secondary school students eligible for FSM rose to 823,749 from 747,143 in 2021-22, with 22.7 per cent of students now eligible.
And in state-funded special schools, the number of pupils eligible rose from 63,474 last year to 68,566.
The largest increase was seen in secondary schools, where the number of pupils eligible for FSM rose by 76,606 on last year, and increase of 10 per cent.
The number of pupils eligible for FSM in nursery settings fell to 3,102 this year, down from 3,267 last year.
Nearly a third of pupils eligible in NE
The region with the highest percentage of pupils known to be eligible for FSM was the North East at almost a third (30.4 per cent).
In the West Midlands, 27.9 per cent are eligible, while the figure in the North West is 26.8 per cent.
FSM eligibility was highest among Year 5 pupils at 28.3 per cent.
Last year, ministers were urged to automate FSM provision as new analysis suggested almost a quarter of a million eligible pupils in England could be missing out.
The Liberal Democrats warned that 234,500 children entitled to FSM in England may not be registered for them, after submitting a written question to ministers.
