Evaluation of the School Meals Programme

RSM Ireland was appointed by the Department of Social Protection to conduct the evaluation of the School Meals Programme. RSM engaged with all stakeholders including suppliers, teachers and children benefitting from the School Meals Programme. The report will help form the future policy direction of this important programme.

Key conclusions of the evaluation include:

• everyone agrees that the School Meals Programme is effective
• there is strong support for extending the School Meals Programme
• studies show that school meals improve academic results by increasing the amount of time that children spend in school. This evaluation shows similar results.
• interviews with stakeholders reveal that providing children with food in school is making a difference to families, in terms of money saved, and time saved in food preparation