Local businesses step up Rashford campaign, give away free school meals

Local businesses including independent convenience stores and charities across England offered free meals for children on Monday, in a public relations fiasco for the government which voted last week not to provide food vouchers for poor families during a school holiday.

Some 1.3 million children are eligible for free lunches at schools in England. Following a campaign by Manchester United and England forward Marcus Rashford to provide extra support during the coronavirus crisis, the government gave their families food vouchers for the summer school holiday. But last week it voted not to do the same during a weeklong school break at the end of October.

Family-run cafes, fish and chip shops, bakeries, pubs, football clubs, hotels and a Sikh temple are among businesses, charities and places of worship that have since responded by announcing plans to give away meals.

"We haven't got much money but we are not prepared to stand back and worry about children not getting a meal over half-term," said the Oceans of Fun soft play centre in the city of Nottingham, offering eligible children free hot or cold meals.

In Sheffield, Mandeep Singh, who runs Singh’s Premier on Teynham Road, aims to give away 500 pack lunches all week, between 10am and 3pm, which includes a sandwich, snack, yoghurt, chocolate bar, some fruit and a bottle of water.

"We don't want any child to go hungry and as a local community retailer, we want to support our shoppers who may need some help,” Mandeep, the winner of the Spirit of the Community Award at the Asian Trader Awards in 2015, said.

“Anyone who'd like lunch for their children can pop into any of our stores, where they'll be able to pick them up free of charge. We are really pleased to be able to give something back to our customers and are here to support them when they need us most,” he added.

On Thursday, Rashford urged contributors and local businesses to tweet using the hashtag #endchildfoodpoverty, which would allow the 22-year-old to locate them.

"Those who have rallied around our communities, please continue to do so, you are the real pride of Britain," he said, using his Twitter feed to publicise dozens of offers of free food.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson defended the government, saying it was providing support through other means such as an increase in welfare benefits and funding for local goverments.

"We will do everything in our power to make sure that no kid, no child goes hungry this winter during the holidays," Johnson said, describing Rashford's efforts as "terrific".

"The debate is how do you deal with it," Johnson said.

Under pressure from angry constituents, several Conservative lawmakers have broken ranks and called for a rethink.

(With Agencies)