Breakfast Clubs: My Visit to Northfield St Nicholas Primary

29th January 2025

I am delighted that families in Lowestoft, Beccles, and the surrounding villages will soon benefit from high-quality before-school childcare. The Labour government is pushing ahead with its Children’s Wellbeing & Schools Bill, ensuring free breakfast clubs are introduced across the country.

During my recent visit to Northfield St Nicholas Primary Academy, I saw first-hand the impact that breakfast clubs have on children and families. Hosted by ‘Magic Breakfast’ and the dedicated school staff, I spoke with teachers, parents, and pupils about how these clubs are transforming lives. This experience reinforced my belief in Labour’s commitment to ensuring every child gets the best start in life.

Research has shown that thousands of primary school children in our local area will benefit from this initiative. These breakfast clubs will not only improve school attendance, attainment, and readiness to learn but also support parents by easing childcare costs and providing greater flexibility around their working hours.

Labour’s Children’s Wellbeing & Schools Bill recently passed its Second Reading, marking a significant step towards ensuring that every child has access to a free breakfast club at their local primary school. The government launched an early adopter scheme in November 2024, with the full rollout beginning in April 2025. We have tripled investment in breakfast clubs to over £33 million, securing funding through our first Budget.

Breakfast clubs are a key part of Labour’s Plan for Change, which is dedicated to breaking the unfair link between a child’s background and their opportunities in life. Our Opportunity Mission focuses on school readiness, covering personal, social, and physical development, as well as communication, literacy, and maths.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has rightly highlighted the importance of these clubs, saying:

“Breakfast clubs boost parents’ work choices as well as children’s life chances. They are integral to this government’s mission to break down the barriers to opportunity, so where you come from doesn’t determine where you end up in life.

“From helping with flexible working for families to improving behaviour and attendance, the supportive start to the day that breakfast clubs provide will help drive high and rising standards for every child.

“This Labour government has a Plan for Change that will give children growing up in our country the best start in life.”

I couldn’t agree more.

Through my visit to Northfield St Nicholas Primary Academy, I have seen first-hand how valuable breakfast clubs will be for families in Lowestoft, Beccles, and the Villages. They will boost attendance and attainment while helping parents save money.

That’s why it’s so disappointing that, under the Conservatives, these clubs were only available in one in ten schools. Labour is changing that – making them available to every child.

It is clear to me that this is a child-centred Labour government, determined to give children in Lowestoft, Beccles, and the Villages the best start in life.

Beyond breakfast clubs, our Labour government is also rolling out fully funded wraparound childcare, ensuring all primary school children can access care from 8am to 6pm.

We are also developing an ambitious strategy to tackle child poverty and ensure children receive the best start in life. Our plan, due to be published in Spring 2025, will be led by a government task force headed by the Work and Pensions Secretary and the Education Secretary. We are exploring every possible measure to drive both immediate and long-term actions to reduce child poverty.

I will continue to champion these policies and ensure families in our community get the support they need.