Marylebone Boys’ School collaborates with Westminster City Council to help families navigate the cost-of-living crisis

On Thursday 20 October, the school held a special event aimed at supporting its community with a range of services that will benefit many families who may be experiencing financial difficulty at this time of economic uncertainty.

During Target Setting Day, parents were able to receive support and guidance on the following:  

• One-to-one meetings between parents and teachers to discuss pupils’ progress and to set individual targets for pupils to reach their goals during this academic year
• Free dentistry screenings provided by Bond Dental London, which is being backed by NHS England as part of the Delivering Better Oral Health programme
• A book sale in collaboration with publishing company, Scholastic. Pupils eligible for Free School Meals will receive a 50% discount up to the value of £5.00
• Support with applications for Free School Meals by a dedicated team from Westminster City Council 

Officers from Westminster City Council were on hand to support parents to complete an application for free school meals. They took parents through the application process which gave an immediate decision as to whether their child was eligible. Parents assessed as eligible do not just get a free meal for their child but also other related benefits such as additional funding for the school to spend on their education and access to free activities during Christmas, Easter and the summer holidays.

Richard Ardron, Headteacher, commented: “We are very grateful to Westminster City Council for putting together the additional package of support for parents and carers who attended the school today for their children’s target setting meetings. We hope that our parent community has felt supported and compelled to take advantage of the services on offer. This is a great example of how the Council and schools can work together to successfully put in place services to directly benefit pupils and their families, above and beyond their educational needs.”