Part of the debate – Senedd Cymru am 4:35 pm ar 28 Mawrth 2023.
The whole-system approach, I agree, is a really important one when we're trying to tackle the impact of poverty on attainment. Hungry kids don't learn very well, and we know from Gordon Brown that 4 million children across the UK are going hungry. But there is also a cultural issue in that six in 10 people never cook from scratch, so this goes well beyond people who are struggling with the cost-of-living crisis.
I noticed that your nearly £5 million investment in the school holiday enrichment programme, and I wondered what consideration you've given to teaching young people and their families to cook during those summer holiday programmes, because there obviously isn't time during the school day, but that seems to me a really effective way of combatting the dominance of the processed food culture that is going to bankrupt the NHS.
Otherwise, I'm intrigued to hear what these exceptional headteachers you've designated as attainment champions—. What are their words of wisdom that they shared with you, most recently on 9 March, on how to tackle the really complex issues around poverty and attainment?