This article is part of our series of briefings on The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act.

One of the new duties in the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 is a duty on all schools providing primary education to arrange a free breakfast club for pupils in Reception to Year 6.

Whilst the commencement date is not set out in the Act itself, the DfE has already begun its national rollout, adding around 2,000 schools from April 2026, with the likely full rollout to follow later this year.

The duty applies to maintained schools, academies, pupil referral units and alternative provision academies, as well as non-maintained special schools. The duty - which sits with the trust or governing body - is to arrange the breakfast club, so it doesn't have to be provided directly by the trust or governing body itself.

What the duty requires

The free breakfast club must be provided each school day, last at least 30 minutes and end immediately before the first school session. It also needs to include breakfast that meets the School Food Standards.

The Act also applies the School Food Standards to all academies. This has been a contractual requirement in academy funding agreements for some time, but will now become a statutory obligation for all.

The breakfast club doesn't have to take place on the school site, but must be in the "vicinity" of the school - so a junior school could, for example, use the neighbouring infant school site.

What schools need to consider

Most schools are unlikely to object to this requirement in principle. The key consideration will be the funding and resources that come with it. The DfE has been running an early adopter scheme with 750 schools since April 2025, with improved funding rates following their feedback.

Exemptions

The Secretary of State can exempt a school from the breakfast club requirement where providing it would seriously prejudice the efficient use of resources, or would be contrary to the best interests of the primary pupils at the school.

Before any application is made, the school must consult parents and the local authority. A publicly available list of schools granted exemptions will be published, likely on the DfE website.

Statutory guidance will cover the practicalities of breakfast clubs and the considerations the Secretary of State will apply to exemption decisions, likely drawing on the national phase one rollout guidance. As it will be statutory guidance, schools will be required to have regard to it when carrying out the duty to arrange a breakfast club.

Find out more about The Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act