Women’s Policy Group Backs Holiday Meal Payments Bill and Calls for Stronger Action on Child Food Poverty
15 June 2026 - The WRDA led Women’s Policy Group (WPG) has welcomed the Education (Holiday Meal Payments) Bill as a vital step toward tackling child poverty and food insecurity across Northern Ireland, while calling for further measures to ensure no child goes hungry. You can read the full call for evidence response here.
In its official response to the Call for Evidence, the WPG expressed strong support for the Bill, highlighting its importance in addressing the growing pressures on low-income families. The Bill proposes the reinstatement of direct financial payments to families of children entitled to free school meals during school holidays, ensuring continued access to food outside term time.
Food poverty hitting women and children hardest
The WPG emphasised that food insecurity remains a critical issue in Northern Ireland, with rising living costs placing increasing strain on households. Evidence cited in the submission shows that:
Around 15% of children (67,000) live in poverty,
75% of women report difficulty affording food, and
Food banks distributed over 90,000 emergency food parcels in 2024.
The group stressed that women are disproportionately impacted, often acting as the “shock absorbers” of poverty, skipping meals and sacrificing their own wellbeing to protect their children.
Direct payments “crucial for dignity and uptake”
The WPG welcomed the Bill’s focus on direct cash payments, noting that this approach:
Reduces stigma,
Increases uptake, and
Gives families dignity and flexibility to meet their children’s needs
Call for stronger, more inclusive measures
While supporting the Bill’s core aims, the WPG is urging policymakers to strengthen the legislation through several key recommendations:
Set payment levels based on real living costs, not school meal pricing
Expand eligibility, with a long-term goal of universal free school meals
Extend payments to all school closure periods, including bank holidays and exceptional closures
Take a cross-departmental approach, involving health and communities to maximise impact
Investment now will reduce long-term costs
The WPG highlighted the economic case for action, noting that child poverty costs the public purse up to £1 billion every year in Northern Ireland.
Failure to act, they warn, risks worsening health inequalities, educational outcomes and long-term life chances for children.
-ENDS-