Free School Meals Data Failing To Reflect Real Disadvantage

A new report from the Education Policy Institute (EPI), funded by the Nuffield Foundation, warns that the current system for registering children for Free School Meals (FSM) is failing to reflect the full picture of deprivation across England — including in rural and coastal areas.

The study, Registration for Free School Meals (FSM): Issues and Implications for Research, Policymaking, Practice and Access, led by Dr Tammy Campbell and Dr Kerris Cooper, examines how FSM registration is used to identify disadvantage and allocate resources. It finds that the measure, which is widely relied upon in education research and policy, is often inconsistent, incomplete, and increasingly disconnected from children’s real-life circumstances.

Analysis of national datasets shows that most children living in poverty are not even entitled to FSM under current thresholds, and that many who are entitled are not registered at all. Researchers found that one in five children from very disadvantaged families were not consistently registered for FSM across both primary and secondary school stages.

The report also reveals a slow shift over the past decade, with children recorded as FSM-eligible now more likely to live in rural areas. However, the relationship between poverty and FSM registration varies widely between regions, and even within them, suggesting that national figures obscure significant local differences. Participants in the study’s expert deliberative event also highlighted that FSM data fails to account for key factors affecting life chances, including rurality, seasonal economies, intergenerational deprivation and access to opportunity. One contributor urged: “please do not define disadvantage based on a single indicator.”

With the planned expansion of FSM entitlement to all families receiving Universal Credit in 2026, the authors say now is the time to rethink how disadvantage is defined and how support is targeted. They call for a national system of centralised auto-enrolment to ensure no eligible child misses out, and for clearer guidance and simplified processes for families with no recourse to public funds. The report also recommends extending auto-enrolment across all educational stages, clarifying early years meal policy, and removing administrative barriers for nursery-aged children.

The EPI warns that without reform, FSM data will remain inconsistent, undermining efforts to understand and address inequality across different communities.

Read the full report here