Thaindian News

London, June 12 (IANS) A businesswoman in east London re-mortagaged her home to establish a breakfast club after learning that one-fourth of Britain’s primary pupils were too hungry to learn.

Today, Carmel McConnell’s breakfast club - Magic Breakfast - feeds 6,000 chidren every day, Daily Express reported.

At 200 of the most deprived schools, Magic Breakfast gives children a healthy start of juice, bagels and cereal or toast for just 23 pence, with many often having not eaten since the previous school lunch.

Carmel said: “My work was advising big business on building trusted brands. I ended up going into schools to research a book on corporate activism and found that many of the teachers were having a whip-round and bringing food into school each morning so they could give their pupils something to eat.

“Without food, the youngsters are unable to concentrate, behave properly or to learn. I immediately bought a whole load of loaves and dropped them off at our local schools in Hackney (in east London) where the teachers had expressed a real need.

“I then re-mortgaged the house when I realised just how widespread this problem was and how little it would take to put it right.”

Valerie Figaro, head of Randall Cremer Primary School, east London, said Magic Breakfast transformed the lives of many of her pupils.

“When children get up they won’t have eaten for 10 to 12 hours and we are asking them to expend energy by using their brains without any fuel,” said Figaro.

Carmel, who draws support from large corporations, hopes to advise schools on raising funds themselves for breakfast clubs.