To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families what methodology his Department and the Schools Food Trust use to access the take-up of school meals in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools; and if he will make a statement. (181790)

Since 2006, the School Food Trust (SFT) has undertaken an annual survey of all local authorities, which has asked them to provide information about school lunch take-up, both primary and secondary, in their area.

School lunch take-up is now included in the local government National Indicator Set and is an indicator for PSA 12 of the 2007 Comprehensive spending review (‘improve the health and wellbeing of children and young people’). Following these developments, the Department is working with the Trust to develop a standard methodology for collecting school lunch take-up information for future SFT surveys. We will shortly be consulting key stakeholders before making a final decision on that future methodology.