Free school meals 'year-round' for low-income families

The Old Monkland Community Centre is a modern low-rise building on the edge of Coatbridge, surrounded by blocks of flats and terraced housing.

As I arrive, insulated boxes are being brought in and stacked in the kitchen.

Margaret Kennedy, a dinner lady at St Andrew's High during term time, is getting ready to serve the 20 or so primary-age children who've come for their lunch.

She tells me: "I love doing this. It's a pleasure".

The community centre is one of nine that have been running in North Lanarkshire, providing free meals every day of the year to primary-aged children from low-income families.

The council scheme, Club 365, is believed to be the only service of its kind to cover all of the days - weekends and holidays - when children are not in school.

It's a flagship policy for the local authority which has said child poverty is a growing problem and one of their top priorities.

It has described what is sometimes known as "holiday hunger" as a serious problem for some children and said addressing it will help child development and attainment.

I was given exclusive access to see how the scheme works for BBC Radio 5 Live.

On the day I visit, the lunch menu is pizza, wedges, vegetable sticks and salad, with milk, juice or water to drink, followed by home baking or yoghurt and fruit.

I asked dinner lady Margaret Kennedy if she thinks there's a need for the food she'll be serving up?

"Och aye," she said. "They're coming in here and they're doing activities and it's just like a wee club to them and they're getting fed as well. And they thoroughly enjoy it."

There's a lively atmosphere in the dining area where the children are eating. They look as if they are enjoying their food and probably also looking forward to the activities after lunch.

In the gym hall next door, Jack Wood, a sports coach in his early 20s, is in charge of a game he calls shark lifeguard.

There's a lot of screaming and running about, but he says it's not just about having fun. He aims to develop more specific sporting skills and says that as the holiday has gone on, he's noticed the children forming friendships and getting more enthusiastic about the scheme.

Perhaps unsurprisingly Club 365 is a huge hit with the parents who use it.

One parent said: "It gives me a wee bit of time to myself, breaks the day up, let's me go to work. It's just great for the kids. My daughter loves it".

Another parent, who has two daughters, agreed that it's a big help for families who struggle to feed their children during the holidays.

"For people who can't afford to do that, especially in summer holidays, it's a great help," he said.

North Lanarkshire's education convenor, Frank McNally, told me that the scheme will more than double in size by the end of the financial year next March.

He can't promise that every child in need will benefit, but said the club would operate in every part of the local authority's area.

He said other councils were looking at the project, and he hopes they'll use it as a model for their own schemes.

Club 365 is a bold initiative at a time when council budgets are being severely squeezed.

Will it turn out to be value for money? Perhaps the children using it this summer will be able to answer that question in the years to come.

You can hear the full report on BBC Radio 5 Live Drive on Monday 13 August from 16:00.