The party’s manifesto includes a policy to replace universal infant free school meals with free breakfasts. The Tories said this would save £650m, which would go to school budgets. Bringing in free breakfasts would cost £60m, they said.
After analysing the cost of this manifesto pledge, researchers from Education Data Lab realised that the Conservatives had based their figures on an evaluation of the Magic Breakfast scheme.
This study, by the Education Endowment Foundation and the Institute for Fiscal Studies (EEF/IFS), did not, however, include the cost of staffing the breakfast clubs.
Magic Breakfast is a charity that runs breakfast clubs in deprived areas and relies on donated food.
The Conservatives have said that the £60m figure is based on take-up of 25 per cent, and that they will set up breakfast clubs similar to the ones the EEF/ IFS identified as 'useful' as universal infant free school meals.
The analysis by Education Data Lab estimates the average cost of a breakfast at 25p per child - around the same figure used in the Magic Breakfast study.
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