Free school meals: Christmas food vouchers benefited nearly 18,000 kids in Wakefield

Parents of kids entitled to free school meals were given vouchers during the two-week break after a government U-turn in mid-December, following a campaign by footballer Marcus Rashford.

By that stage, many councils across the UK, including Wakefield, had already committed to funding such a scheme themselves.

As a result, the cash was combined to reach 17,867 children from more than 9,000 local families.

The scheme included households claiming tax credits as well as those entitled to school meals during term time.

Councillor Maureen Cummings, the local Cabinet member for communities, said the programme had made a significant impact.

"The feedback we got was tremendous," she said. "I had so many people contacting me over Facebook to say how much difference it was going to make to their family over Christmas.

"Not only did it help their child, but it also helped the family given the costs of Christmas.

"The council topped up the government grant funding that came through to make sure we reached as many people as possible."

The local authority has committed to running the programme again during the February half-term.

Schools will remain closed after that for the foreseeable future however, the government confirmed on Wednesday.

In the meantime, the Department of Education is funding £15 a week food parcels which are being sent to pupils who would normally get a free hot meal at school.

There was an outcry earlier this month about those however, after images of paltry packages containing handfuls of small items emerged.

The company responsible, Chartwells, subsequently apologised.