Two schools in Northolt offer free breakfast and 30 minutes of pre-school care

Two schools in Northolt have joined a new wave of the government's free breakfast clubs program. The Viking Primary School and the Alec Reed Academy Primary School on Bengarth Road offer students free breakfast and at least 30 minutes of pre-school care.

The program is aimed at children from Reception to Year 6 and is designed to help families who need to reconcile school preparation with commuting, sibling care or other daily responsibilities in the morning.

The most important information for parents is simple: participation in the club is free of charge.

Children can come to school early, have breakfast and spend at least half an hour in the care of the staff before starting normal activities.

This is no ordinary paid "wraparound care"

The new program should be distinguished from traditional pre-school and after-school clubs, for which parents often have to pay extra.

In the case of schools participating in the DfE program, the basic offer of the breakfast club is to be available free of charge for eligible years.

For many families in Northolt, this can have more than just a financial impact. The possibility of bringing the child to school earlier may facilitate starting work on time, commuting by public transport or organizing the morning in families with more than one child.

Next changes for families using Universal Credit

A separate issue is free school meals.

From the school year 2026/27, it is planned to extend access to Free School Meals for children from households receiving Universal Credit.

This means that more families who may have previously been ineligible for free lunches due to existing income thresholds will be able to benefit from this support.

However, Free Breakfast Club and Free School Meals are two different programs. Therefore, the parent should separately check the rules for breakfasts and separately check the child's entitlement to free lunches.

What should parents do?

Parents of children attending Viking Primary or Alec Reed Academy should contact the school directly or check the messages sent by ParentMail.

It is worth asking first of all:

from what time a child can be brought in,
whether you need to sign up the child to the club in advance,
what breakfast is offered,
whether the number of places is limited.

Hours of operation may vary between schools, so it is best to confirm the details directly at the office.

Help for families in Northolt

Rising prices for food, bills, and transportation mean that even relatively small savings matter to many households.

If the child can eat breakfast at school at no additional cost and the parent gains half an hour of care before the start of the lesson, it can be a real support for the home budget and daily organization of life on the scale of the entire school year.

The program is also an attempt to give children a more equal start to the school day. A child coming to class after breakfast can concentrate more easily during the first class than a student who did not have time to eat anything in the morning.

The most important thing for Northolt residents, however, is that the program is already starting to appear in local schools.

If your child goes to one of these schools, it is worth asking about the possibility of enrolling them in a free breakfast club.