Seeing as the government is clearly short of spare cash, you would have thought the Department for Education investing in a new national programme to improve pupils’ outcomes would be well received.

The Government recently announced over £30 million for a pilot of free breakfast clubs in 750 primary schools starting in April 2025 in advance of an expected national rollout of breakfast clubs in all primary schools next year.

But far from generating positive headlines, the breakfast club pilot scheme has been dogged by reports of schools pulling out or potentially being left worse off as a result of taking part in the pilot. 

So why has this new scheme been met with such scepticism? What obstacles could primary schools face when setting up new breakfast clubs or expanding existing ones? And does everyone agree on what problems a national rollout of breakfast clubs is supposed to solve?

My guests are Rebecca Paddock, an Executive Headteacher at Hoyland Common Academy Trust, and Anna McShane, director of the New Britain Project – an independent progressive think tank.

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