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<p>In October 2018, 1,205,000 pupils in England were eligible and claiming free school
meals, which is 14.7% of all pupils in state-funded schools. The department plans
to publish the information relating to October 2020 in due course.</p><p>Where pupils
become newly entitled to free school meals, local authorities and schools are able
to quickly verify their eligibility using the department’s electronic Eligibility
Checking System to ensure that this vital support is available immediately.</p><p>We
have introduced a number of immediate measures, including the launch of the National
Voucher Scheme, to ensure that children who usually receive benefits-related free
school meals still had access to this support during the period that schools were
previously restricted from opening to the majority of pupils. Schools received, and
continue to receive, their funding for free school meals as normal.</p><p>Building
on the significant support given to the most vulnerable during the COVID-19 outbreak,
a new £170 million Covid Winter Grant Scheme has been launched by the Department for
Work and Pensions, and will be run by councils in England. A link to the scheme is
available here: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-winter-grant-scheme"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-winter-grant-scheme</a>.</p>
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