Meath school to take part in Hot Meals Pilot Project

A school in Mornington has been chosen to take part in the Hot School Meals Pilot Project, an initiative to provide a hot meal to primary school children on a pilot basis from September.

Meath East TD and  Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection, Regina Doherty today announced that Gaelscoil An Bhradáin Feasa in Mornington, Co. Meath is amongst 36 primary schools (with over 6,600 pupils) which have been selected for the Hot School Meals Pilot Project, an initiative to provide a hot meal to primary school children on a pilot basis from September.

This pilot scheme for hot school dinners was announced by the Minister during Budget 2019, when she said that the initiative would be trialled in schools from September 2019. The selection process for the pilot schools sought to ensure that there would be a school from each local authority as well as a good mix of different size schools.   

Funding will be provided to schools to source suppliers and families will not be asked for additional contributions towards the meals. Each primary school participating in the pilot project will be expected to provide a menu choice of at least two different meals per day plus a Vegetarian/Vegan choice and an option that caters for students’ religious and cultural dietary requirements

Minister Doherty said:

“A hot school meal is not just about nutrition but it also guarantees a better education. The research out there shows us that children who benefit from a daily nutritious hot dinner have greater focus and better learning outcomes. I would like to thank all the schools who applied for the pilot – we had an enthusiastic response. I am delighted to be extending this pilot to the 36 schools announced today including County Meath’s Gaelscoil An Bhradáin Feasa. They represent a good cross-sample of schools and I look forward to the insights we gather from their experiences.”