Of the 5,000 school support staff that took part in the survey by GMB, 8 per cent said that they used their own money to pay for food for pupils who don’t get enough to eat at home.
Many of those polled by the union spoke of children coming to school without having eaten breakfast or not having any money for food at break times.
One respondent said, ‘I regularly buy biscuits and snacks for children who have nothing for their mid-morning break.’
Another said, ‘I have bought some children fruit in the morning as they often come to school without having breakfast.’
The survey also reveals that the majority of schools have been forced to make ‘significant’ financial cutbacks due to Government underfunding. As a result, more than half of support staff polled said they are spending their own money on resources and other necessities for children including pens, pencils, books and toilet paper.
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