7. Question No. 7—EducationDr ANAE NERU LEAVASA (Labour—Takanini) to the Minister of EducationQuestion No. 7—Education7. Dr ANAE NERU LEAVASA (Labour—Takanini) to the Minister of Education: Mālō 'aupito Mr Speaker. What feedback has she received on the Government's free healthy school lunches programme?Hon JAN TINETTI (Minister of Education): Last week the Government reached the milestone of 100 million free and healthy school lunches delivered. Every school I visit that has the Healthy School Lunches programme tells me what a huge difference it makes to their kids' wellbeing learning and engagement. Much of this sentiment is reflected in public reports. For example a principal from Nelson has said We're having 325 lunches provided every day and everyone has exactly the same lunch we know it's nutritious we know it meets the health standards it has benefits in terms of concentration levels and to learning outcomes for our tamariki." This is a sentiment shared across 996 schools who are eligible for the programme.Dr Anae Neru Leavasa: Why is this a worthwhile investment?Hon JAN TINETTI: This Government believes in barrier-free access to education. When we came to office many students were turning up hungry or not turning up at all. The attendance challenges we currently face started in 2015 were worsened during COVID-19 and are now starting to turn around. Schools tell me that having free healthy lunches at school is a critical part of the plan to turn around attendance and meet our national targets. Teachers school trustees and whānau acknowledge the difference the programme makes in the classroom and to the behaviour of students. They know how hard it is for hungry kids to learn.Dr Anae Neru Leavasa: What would it mean for families if this programme was no longer available?Hon JAN TINETTI: With the current cost of living pressures that families are experiencing knowing their kids will get a free healthy school lunch provides peace of mind and it's one less thing to put pressure on the family budget. The programme is estimated to save a family with two kids around $66 per week and $2500 per year on average. While the programme is targeted to 25 percent of schools with the highest need many have spoken about the importance of universality for eligible schools. By providing lunch to every student in the school it reduces any stigma that can be associated with singling out kids who don't have lunch that day. Approximately 230000 students receive a healthy school lunch every day and we know that if the programme wasn't in place there would be many children who would go without.Dr Anae Neru Leavasa: What other benefits does the Government's Healthy School Lunches deliver for communities?Hon JAN TINETTI: The programme also supports over 2300 jobs in communities across New Zealand. As the Minister of Education I have travelled across the country and spoken to the wonderful Kiwis delivering these meals for our tamariki and the joy it brings them to know they are preparing a meal for a child to support their wellbeing and learning. Just last week while I was helping prepare the lunches at Alfriston College in the Takanini electorate one of the kitchen workers was telling me how much the programme had changed her life. We currently have 254 schools using an internal delivery model where the lunches are prepared on site often by students to provide educational benefit in food preparation nutrition and time management."