When I taught early years, I used to line the children up for lunch. Black and white, Muslim and Jewish. Without prompting, they would line up and hold hands.

If you ask a group of children in any school in this country to distribute lunch, I guarantee you, they will share whatever food is available equally. Down to the jelly-bean. 

Our children have the vision of the society that we need to build. One in which every child can flourish. To them it’s instinctive. 

We know Free School Meals for All is wildly popular with voters.

That’s why pupils, alongside parents and teachers up and down the country, have been pressing the Government for Free School Meals for All.

I’m proud to say our union’s No Child Left Behind campaign has had big success. Earlier this summer the Labour Government decided to extend Free School Meals to more than 500,000 children on Universal Credit. 

We are celebrating this major step. But the job is far from done. 

The impact of Free School Meals for All for children’s health and learning should now be well understood by policymakers. 

It’s been proven to improve diet and attainment. It lets children eat, learn and grow together. Free to be children, without stigma or shame. 

But perhaps less often understood are the wider impacts beyond the school dinner hall. We see all the time the cynicism that sets in for voters who never believe means-tested policies could include their family. 

At best, this breeds mistrust and disengagement, and at its worst it's exploited by politicians who would seek to divide us. Black vs white, immigrant vs native-born. 

The solution is simple and there’s not a child in this country who doesn’t instinctively know the right answer. Every child needs to eat. Hungry children can’t think straight and they certainly can’t learn. 

Schools are formative places in our communities. And lunch sits at the centre of every school day as an invitation. 

We can start to build the society we want right there. A country where every child eats. In a society where we don’t have to scrap and fight to eat, we can start to imagine a world which is just and fair, diverse and open. 

Children tell us the canteen is a place where differences in income, circumstances or parenting are all too obvious. For some this can lead to feelings of shame and isolation. Universalism takes a moment that can induce stigma or division, and turns it into ritual which can be full of joy and togetherness. 

In London, Free School Meals for All is making an impact on children and families already. 

One study from the Nuffield Foundation earlier this year found improvements in diet and educational attainment for London school children. Another study reports parents can now spend more money on other healthy activities for their children, like sports clubs to help them stay active.

Wales was the first nation to roll out hot, healthy dinners to every child in primary school. Children in Scotland fare better too - with free school lunches available up to age 10 for all.  

We know Free School Meals for All is wildly popular with voters. 

Our latest polling found 88% of parents/carers outside London wanted the UK Government to extend Free School Meals to all primary school children in England, with two thirds (66%) “strongly” supporting this change. 

It’s a policy that’s right for children, wanted by families and can start to unite our fractured society. 

There are those on the far-right who seek to use every opportunity to divide us. We don’t have to give in to that. 

Our children are showing us the way; the question is will we listen?