The head of a federation of schools has revealed the heart-breaking reality for parents of his school's pupils who are facing financial difficulty due to the cost of living crisis.

As well as overseeing all 31 schools as part of the White Horse Federation and acting as head for Swindon-based Drove Primary, Dr Nick Capstick, 62, who is also battling cancer, is campaigning for more to be done to feed school children. 

He is the independent chair of the National School Reform Working Group made up of around 30 organisations including teachers, academics, caterers, food suppliers and charities calling for the government to make free school meals more accessible. 

And he has revealed the devastating consequences if nothing is done.

"We are seeing more children having time off school and that means parents have to have time off from work," he said in an interview with Ian Mean MBE, director of Business West.

Swindon Advertiser: Dr Nick Capstick enjoying a school dinnerDr Nick Capstick enjoying a school dinner (Image: Newsquest)

“Food poverty, linked with fuel poverty, linked with the cost of living means increasingly families are making choices. When they go to the food bank they are saying they don’t even want food that they need to cook. They can’t even afford to put the cooker or oven on." 

He said that the government has come up with some "laudable" proposals but they don't do anything to address the immediate growing crisis. 

“More and more parents are ashamed about their kids having free school meals. It is a stigma for them and makes them feel embarrassed and ashamed.

“As a result, we increasingly have parents going into debt. Parents I know are going to money lenders and sometimes not the best money lenders. It is a vicious circle."

To be eligible for free school meals a householder has to earn less than £7,400, which Nick says is too restrictive. He thinks that making universal free school meals for all children will take the stigma away from parents and ensure all children get the food they need. 

Nick added that unless something is done, more and more people will become desperate and stated that two mothers from one school recently came to him in tears.

“They had just been arrested for shoplifting - they had never shoplifted in their life. They just couldn’t afford the food for their kids.

“They went for the cheapest products at the supermarket. That was the level of their honour and nobility.”