The government has announced that it will permanently allow children from families with no recourse to public funds (NRPF) to access free school meals, in a victory for Marcus Rashford’s child poverty campaign.

       Campaigners have said they are “tremendously happy” after children and families minister Will Quince revealed that a policy extending free school meals eligibility to children whose parents’ immigration status prevents them from accessing mainstream benefits would be made permanent.

       Around a month into the pandemic in 2020, the government temporarily extended free school meals to children in some NRPF families as the coronavirus outbreak impacted schools.

       Charities and campaigners, including England footballer Rashford, have since called for this to be made permanent. Ministers have been reviewing this for over a year, prompting accusations that they were “dragging their feet”.

       NRPF is a condition applied to those staying in the UK on a temporary immigration status and who have not yet qualified for permanent residency in the UK, restricting their access to public funds. It also applies to people who have insecure or irregular immigration status.

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       In a parliamentary statement on Thursday, Mr Quince said he was “pleased” to announce the extension, adding that the change would “help to ensure that every child gets the best possible start and receives the right support, in the right place, at the right time”.

       It remains unclear as to whether children who are affected by NRPF because their parents have insecure or irregular immigration status will benefit from this change.

       The move was welcomed by campaigners. Shona Goudie, policy research manager the Food Foundation, said she was “delighted” with the decision.

       “Our young food ambassadors are particularly celebrating today, having campaigned for years for government to make this change, most recently with Marcus Rashford through his End Child Food Poverty campaign,” she said.

       But she added: “There are many children at risk of food insecurity who are still missing out in the midst of the current cost-of-living crisis.”

       Josephine Whitaker-Yilmaz, policy and public affairs manager at charity Praxis, said: “At a time when the cost of living is rising rapidly, this decision could not come at a better time for many of the families we work with.

       “We would urge the department to urgently clarify whether children in families with insecure or irregular immigration status, who are amongst the most excluded in our society, will also benefit from this measure.”

       A woman from the NRPF Action Group, a group of campaigners with lived experience of NRPF who are working to scrap the policy, said: “We are tremendously happy to hear today’s good news. This promising development give us hope. It is so important to safeguard children.

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       “This is a step further on our quest: we are closer to ensuring that one of the most basic rights of children, to be well nourished, are being met,” said the woman, who did not wish to be named.

       “We are not resting on our laurels, there are more battles to fight. We are glad to see the government is listening to us and our voices are being heard. We look forward to achieving more of our aims.”