Education, health and school meals: a review of policy changes in England and Wales over the last century

This review will explain the development of policies that have affected school meals in England and Wales. The act of providing food at mid-day for school children should be straightforward, but there is a conflict between organisations as to the purpose of school meals. Are they primarily a health benefit or an education benefit for the child? The origins of this situation can be traced back to the end of the 19th Century when school meals first started.