There are “significant differences” between the number of children living in poverty and those who are receiving the Pupil Premium or free school meals.
Discrepancy: While official figures tell us that 4.3 million children and young people are living in poverty, only 2.1 million are receiving free school meals due to a low income threshold amogn other factors - Adobe Stock

The Education Policy Institute think-tank has become the latest body to call for automatic enrolment for FSMs after publishing a report spelling out key problems with the current approach.

The study (Campbell et al, 2025) is clear: “Overall, across all years, fewer children are registered for FSM than are estimated to be in poverty. This is partly by design: because the family income threshold for registration is so low (£7,400 per annum). It is also because there is under-registration among eligible children.

“Additionally, FSM eligibility criteria do not account for factors such as housing costs and family size, which are heavily associated with poverty.”

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