'We started from a much lower base than other authorities' - says Derbyshire council as school meal price increase called ‘extortionate’

Labour councillors in Derbyshire have launched the online petition after Derbyshire County Council announced primary school meals will go up by 95p per child, per day.

The proposed price of £3.25 per meal in primary school is higher than in neighbouring counties – with schools in Cheshire East charging £2.30 and Nottinghamshire schools charging between £2.30 and £2.58.

The increase has been named ‘extortionate’ and the petition to reduce the price rise has already had over 3,000 signatures online.

Following the petition launch, Derbyshire County Council Cabinet Member for Education Councillor Alex Dale has explained the reasons behind the decision.

He said: “We are acutely aware that this is a significant increase and we wish we weren’t in the position of having to make it. It is not a decision that we’ve taken lightly by any means as we know that families across Derbyshire are continuing to face real challenges with the cost of living. But the sad reality is that, as a service, we are not immune to those same pressures.

“With food inflation having reached the heights of 19%, the costs of our ingredients are soaring and last year’s local government pay award alone left a £1.28m hole in our budget. If not addressed, these challenges threaten to make the service unsustainable in the future, meaning we’d no longer be able to serve healthy, nutritious, hot meals to Derbyshire pupils and the jobs of 1500 hardworking and valued employees would be at risk.

“Although this year’s increase may seem like a lot in one go, this is largely due to the fact that we have started from a much lower base, at £2.30, than many other authorities. We have worked extremely hard to keep our prices down, freezing them in two out of the past four years and we are constantly striving to make the service more efficient.

“I’m disappointed that opposition members aren’t being straight with Derbyshire residents. They demand a price reduction but don’t say, in the climate of significant ongoing financial pressure on the County Council, what other frontline services they’d cut in order to fund it.

“Different council-run catering services choose to recommend meal prices at different times of the year, including some who review and amend prices more regularly throughout the year. This makes it difficult to draw reasonable comparisons. But the comparisons made by Labour Councillors with other local authorities don’t seem to bear much resemblance to the present reality. Some of the figures quoted seem to already be a year or so out of date and don’t reflect current prices, nor the fact that many other council-run catering services are currently reviewing their charges as we speak due to the huge challenges the sector is facing.

“We have always sought to set our recommended prices for the beginning of the school year as an annual exercise, so that parents can plan ahead. We’ve also been clear that we will not compromise on the quality or the size of our award-winning school meals, as some providers have, and ours will continue to be freshly prepared by our excellent teams, using good-quality, nutritious ingredients. Ultimately, our prices need to reflect the current costs of producing the meals so that we can continue to offer them.

“For any parents who are struggling, we would strongly encourage them to check their eligibility for Free School Meals as we know that not everyone who is able to receive them will always apply. There is also further information around other forms of support, including the Household Support Fund, on our website.”