The Amazon team had a great day today, visiting St John’s CE Primary School in Bethnal Green to launch a new initiative with UK charity Magic Breakfast providing over 700,000 healthy breakfasts in the 2016-2017 school year to over 3,800 children in 57 schools around the country.
We have committed funding to ensure thousands of children in schools neighbouring our sites around the UK receive a nutritious breakfast before school including bagels, cereals, juice and porridge. Through our support, Magic Breakfast will also provide a specialist member of staff to work with the schools, helping focus efforts on the most vulnerable children and building nutritional understanding among teachers and parents. A number of schools will also receive books and educational games to use during breakfast clubs.
“A good primary education plays such an important role in helping kids build the skills and confidence they need to succeed in today’s increasingly high-skilled economy,” said Doug Gurr, UK Country Manager, Amazon. “Every child, regardless of background, should get an equal chance to excel at school, and we should not allow hunger to be a barrier to getting a great education. We’re committed to helping thousands of children around the UK get a healthy, nutritious breakfast to improve concentration, boost attendance, and ultimately learn a lot more.”
Magic Breakfast’s founder and Chief Executive, Carmel McConnell, welcomed the new support saying: “This partnership adds to the Magic Breakfast national offer, and we are delighted to be able to add Amazon to our list of generous corporate supporters. This help is urgently needed. A hungry child cannot concentrate and the most important lessons are taught in the morning. So if we as a country want to improve attainment and social mobility, it makes sense to grow the successful Magic Breakfast approach into a national school breakfast programme.
“It is great having Amazon on our team with this - helping us to reach more of the half a million children who turn up to school too hungry or malnourished to learn. We hope other businesses take up this cause too and support the next generation on their path to career success.”
Amazon’s work with Magic Breakfast forms part of our Amazon in the Community programme which supports communities in and around where Amazon operates in the UK. Amazon in the Community focuses on helping children reach their potential in the digital world by creating a positive environment for children, supporting the development of essential skills, and empowering young people find and develop their career.
