CONCERNS HAVE BEEN raised with the Department of Social Protection that children with Coeliac Disease, of which there are thousands in Ireland, are not being “catered for” by the state’s School Meals Programme. 

The programme provides funding towards food services to 1,700 schools in Ireland, attended by over 300,000 children. It is being rolled out to hundreds more schools this year.

Coeliac Disease is a chronic autoimmune condition where the small intestine becomes inflamed and can’t absorb nutrients, due to a bad reaction to gluten. 

The most severe symptoms include nerve damage, disorders that impact coordination, unexpected weight loss, fertility issues and malnutrition. 

Gill Brennan, the head of Advocacy for the Coeliac Society of Ireland told The Journal that the organisation was “surprised” when parents of children with Coeliac Disease contacted the organisation about their children not being catered for under the programme. 

The society has carried out a small survey of parents of coeliac children and found that 67% children who are entitled to free meals in their school under the programme are not being catered for. 

Of 149 parents of coeliac children who attend schools that have the programme, 104 said that their child’s gluten free diet was not catered to. 

30% said their child had been “glutened” due to eating food provided under the scheme. This refers to the autoimmune response people with Coeliac Disease have when they ingest gluten. The symptoms include abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, diarrhea, and in some cases vomiting. 

The society wrote to Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys last November , and told her that it is “appalled” by the Government’s “failure” to “protect and respect” the rights of children with the autoimmune disease through its school meals programme. 

The society said that if the Government does not make the inclusion of coeliac children mandatory as it rolls the scheme out to 900 schools this year, it will be “discriminating” against more children. 

The society pointed out that the standards from the Food in Schools Policy in Northern Ireland, which the Government has adapted, contain an entire section on provisions for coeliac children which has been “completely disregarded” by public bodies here. 

The society told the Minister that the “exclusion” of coeliac children is “clear case” of discrimination and “neglect”. It urged Humphreys to take action to make the inclusion of coeliac children, and children with other dietary requirements related to medical conditions, “mandatory” under the programme. 

The Minister replied in December, and told the society that each school is required to provide a menu of choice for at least two different meals per day under the programme, and that where required, schools are required to provide vegetarian/vegan options. 

She added that schools must cater to children with religious and cultural dietary requirements, and that the provision of food for those “with allergies” must comply with the standards. 

The society has pointed out that Coeliac Disease is a serious and chronic condition, not a food allergy. 

Humphreys additionally said that there are numerous suppliers for school meals nationwide, and that it is down to “individual schools” to ensure they source a supplier that can meet the dietary needs of their pupils. 

Gill said that this response evidences a lack of “oversight” of the programme. 

“You can guarantee that there are suppliers who will not cater to one or two coeliac children within a school,” she said.

Gill said that the funding that goes to schools for the programme comes from taxpayer money, and that it is “incumbent on schools and the Department” to ensure that children are not excluded on medical grounds. 

She added that there is already a financial burden to families who live with the disease, as the necessary gluten free diet can cost them up to an additional €1000 per year on food. 

Gill said that as the scheme is currently targeted at disadvantaged schools, the exclusion of coeliac children is causing further issues for already vulnerable children in some cases.

The Journal has asked the Department of Social Protection for comment.