Almost one in four children living in poverty in Northern Ireland are not eligible for free school meals, according to new UK-wide research.

The study, funded by the Nuffield Foundation and involving Ulster University, found that 24% of children in poverty in Northern Ireland fall outside free school meal eligibility. This compares with 17% in Scotland and 18% in Wales.

Following England's expansion of eligibility to all children in families receiving Universal Credit, researchers estimate Northern Ireland now has the highest proportion of children in poverty excluded from free school meals among the four UK nations.

In Northern Ireland, families receiving Universal Credit generally qualify for free school meals only if their annual net household earnings do not exceed £15,900. England has removed that earnings threshold, extending eligibility regardless of earnings.

The research estimates free school meals can be worth approximately £1,000 annually to a family with two children.

The figures are based on calculations by the Child Poverty Action Group using household income data from 2021-22 to 2023-24 alongside administrative free school meal records.

Dr Ciara Fitzpatrick, Senior Lecturer in Law at Ulster University and co-investigator on the programme, said devolution creates both winners and losers, and that the current government should not view devolution as a solution to creating thriving communities.

The report highlights the contrast between Northern Ireland and Scotland, where the Scottish Child Payment provides £28.20 per child each week to qualifying low-income households receiving Universal Credit. Northern Ireland does not operate an equivalent payment.

The findings come as Northern Ireland awaits a replacement anti-poverty strategy. The previous strategy ended in 2022 without specific poverty-reduction targets. Consultation on a new strategy closed in September 2025, and Communities Minister Gordon Lyons has said he intends to bring a revised strategy to Executive colleagues before the end of 2026, with publication provisionally indicated for March 2027.

Parents and carers in Northern Ireland can check eligibility and apply for free school meals through the Education Authority, which also administers school uniform grants.