Robert-Frederic said school dinner price hikes had made paying for food "more difficult for all students"

The increasing price of school dinners in Northern Ireland has left some pupils "struggling just to get a hot meal," one teenage student has said.

Robert-Frederic, 17, is among pupils at Belfast's Malone Integrated College who spoke out after it was announced prices are to rise for the second year in a row.

Post-primary pupils will pay an extra 15% on their canteen choices from January, while set meals at pre-school, primary and special schools will rise by 30p.

The Education Authority (EA) said the amount parents would have to pay was still well below the average cost of producing a school meal, estimated at over £5.20.

Families recently had to set aside extra money for term-time meals after primary and special school dinners increased by 50p in January 2026.

At that time, post-primary pupils were informed they would pay almost 20% more for the food they bought in school canteens.

Robert-Frederic told BBC News NI that the previous increase had already made paying for lunches "more difficult for all students".

"Back before the price rise in 2026, you could get water, a cookie and your hot meal and now with the price rise students are struggling just to get a hot meal," he said.

"Instead of just going off numbers on a page, you should actually see how it affects people."

Malone Integrated College pupil Naomi said lack of proper food can affect learning

More than half (55%) of pupils at Malone Integrated College are entitled to free school meals but many others are from low incomes households.

"It's horrible seeing people around me not being able to afford school meals," said 17-year-old Naomi.

"Without proper lunches it can affect people's learning and their mental health."

For 16-year-old Paddy, the last price hike meant he had to change his canteen choices at Malone.

"Some of my favourite foods such as like the school chicken - that went up," he said.

"And as a student that felt like I should prioritise getting to school because I only get £5 a day and £2.50 of that has to go towards getting the bus."

Paddy said he was having to choose between his favourite foods and his bus ticket

The school's headteacher, Áine Leslie, said the price rise will put further pressure on families who are already worried about the cost of living crisis.

"I think the cumulative effect of this will be immense, particularly families who have multiple children, both at a primary school and a post-primary school, and trying to make ends meet, it's going to become incredibly difficult," she said.

When the prices increased earlier this year, she remembers "sitting with the head of the cafeteria and heartbreakingly decide how much to put up each item".

She said some students would be "worried about the stigma attached to this, and won't voice their concerns and won't ask for help" which was "really sad".

Leslie added that not having a healthy, balanced diet or going without food will be a "barrier to learning".

Principal Áine Leslie said she believes "families are going to struggle"

The latest increase means the price of a paid for dinner in a primary school or special school, for instance, will have risen from £2.60 to £3.40 since the start of 2026.

Pupils eligible for free school meals will not be affected.

The rise in school dinner prices is not the only measure introduced by the EA in response to what they describe as "an exceptionally challenging financial position".

There will also be a change to some menus in schools, replacing baked desserts with cheaper alternatives.

Prices went up at the start of 2026 and will increase again in the new year

Education Minister Paul Givan said he was disappointed and concerned but added it was due to underfunding of the education sector as a whole.

"I don't want this to be introduced, but it is a result of the Education Authority not having sufficient funding," he told the BBC's Good Morning Ulster programme.

He said education often bears "the greatest burden" during cost-saving exercises and argued his department should receive a greater share of Stormont's budget.

Givan also said the "inadequate" funding that Stormont receives from Westminster was "bearing down on a huge number of public services in Northern Ireland".

Stormont ministers are yet to agree a budget, despite weeks of talks with Secretary of State Sir Chris Bryant, who has repeatedly said there is "no more money".

At Omagh High School in County Tyrone, almost 30% of pupils have free school meals.

For the families who have to pay, putting the price up could deter those children having "nutritious meals" according to its principal, Christos Gaitatzis.

He told BBC News NI that the 15% hike was excessive.

"What is the price index at the moment – is it 3,4, 5%? I would imagine that would be the reasonable increase that you would put on anything.

"So they are going three times the value - to me it is unreasonable."

He said the rise would have an "overall future impact on the health of the kids".

The commissioner for children, Chris Quinn, says children should not have to pay the price for the financial crisis in education

Northern Ireland's Commissioner for Children and Young People, Chris Quinn, said he was ''flabbergasted" at the change.

"School meals are not a luxury. For many children they are an essential part of the school day, and these increases will hit hardest those families already struggling with the cost of living."

Quinn added it was "particularly difficult to accept" another price hike shortly after the EA advised staff and pupils to "wear more clothes" to cut school heating bills.

"Children did not create the financial crisis in education and they should not be expected to pay the price for it," he added.

Payments which subsidise milk at about 500 schools are at risk, but the EA is to seek funding from the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs.

The EA is also planning to offer more parents payments to transport their children to school rather than paying for taxis.

At present, some parents receive payments if their children are eligible for free school transport but no private providers, like taxis, are available.

Charges for EA music lessons for pupils are also set to rise again.

The EA said it was being asked to deliver services "with insufficient funding" at a time when costs, such as providing energy for schools, continued to rise.

It said it hoped to save £20m by introducing the measures on top of £30m saved this year.

"These were difficult decisions which sought to balance our commitment to children and young people alongside the requirement to live within the funding allocated for the year."

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