brookvale phonics birmingham mail
TRANSCRIPT
BIRMINGHAM MAIL, MONDAY, DECEMBER 29, 2014 15
All the latest news at www.birminghammail.co.uk NEWS
‘‘Well over a million infants are enjoying a school meal at lunchtime... the naysayers about this policy can eat their hats, and all the leftover sprouts
DEPUTY PM NICK CLEGG
Kids benefit as they tuck in to school dinnersCRITICS of free school meals have been told to “eat their hats” after re-vealing almost 200,000 pupils in the West Mid-lands have benefited from the controversial scheme.
Free lunches for all reception, Year 1 and Year 2 primary school pupils were introduced by the Government in Septem-ber – at a cost of £1 billion nationally.
Now new figures have revealed how many pupils have opted to take advan-tage of the free meals, which were criticised by former education secre-tary Michael Gove as being “wholly unaccepta-ble” as they diverted funding away from teach-ing.
In the West Midlands, 86.6 per cent of children have chosen to benefit from free school meals, 1.6 per cent more than the national average.
It means 183,575 youngsters aged four to seven in the region are tucking into free food – saving each family on average £400 a year on the
price of providing packed lunches.
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said: “Well over a million infants across the children are enjoying a school meal at lunchtime, giving them a better start to afternoon lessons and a healthy boost for their first years in school.
“The other good news for families is that this saves them up to £400 per child a year on the cost of a packed lunch.
“The naysayers about this policy can eat their hats, and all the leftover sprouts.”
Now the government is
encouraging even more pupils to take up the free meals, which are not compulsory, claiming they help children to focus and concentrate throughout the day.
A spokesman for Mr Clegg said: “There is a real need to address health problems that are linked to a poor diet, with almost 20 per cent of children being obese by the time they leave primary school.
“Evidence clearly shows that childhood eat-ing habits stay with you for life, which is why it’s vital to address this prob-lem from a very young age.”
Nutritionist Amanda Ursell said a common misconception is that a packed lunch is healthier than a school meal.
“In fact only one per cent of packed lunches meet the nutritional standards that currently apply to school food,” she said. “We know that a healthy school lunch can improve a child’s aca-demic performance.
“Pilot studies showed children eating a free school meal were up to two months ahead of their peers in maths and Eng-lish.”
Emma McKinneyEducation [email protected]
Studies have shown that children eating a free school meal were ■up to two months ahead of their peers in maths and English
PUPILS at a Birmingham primary school have prov-en to be among the smart-est in the country after re-ceiving top marks in a reading test.
A whopping 97 per cent of Year 1 pupils from Brookvale Primary School this passed the phonics screening check in the last academic year – an impressive 23 per cent above the national average of 74 per cent.
It makes the pupils at the school in Mallard Drive, Erdington, among the top five per cent in the country.
Across the country
600,000 five and six-year-olds took part in the check – which sees all children being tested to ensure that they are able to read pho-netically.
This means they recog-nise the sounds that are said when they look at the letters and can blend the sounds together to read words.
Head teacher Claire Fin-kel said: “We are incredibly proud that our hard work has ensured that children are getting the best start to their early reading devel-opment.
“If children are able to pass the phonics test, we
are confident that they are successful early readers.”
The news comes after the Mail has launched its Born and Read campaign to boost literacy levels across the city.
We have teamed up with children’s reading charity Beanstalk, the city’s Adult Education Service and the Library of Birmingham to run the campaign.
We need volunteers willing to devote up to three hours per week to inspire a child to read.
Anyone wanting to take part can email [email protected] or call 0121 234 5188.
Primary school pupils bag top marks in reading test
Art workshop at Blakesley HallA FREE art workshop featuring the art of Hasret Brown, inspired by traditional Islamic geometric designs, will take place at Blakesley Hall in Yardley on Wednesday, January 14.
The event is suitable for adults and children aged 12 years-plus and will take place from 9.30am to 1.30pm.
For further details call 0121 464 2193.