THOUSANDS of people in Sussex have signed Marcus Rashford's petition to tackle food poverty - with new figures revealing how many children in the county are elible for free school meals.

The Manchester United and England star has kicked off his campaign by saying "we must act with urgency" to make sure no child worries about what they are going to eat.

It calls for free school meals to be extended to every child from a household on Universal Credit or an equivalent benefit.

Find out below how many children in your area are eligible for free schools meals and how many people have signed the petition

A government-commissioned report published earlier this year said expanding the scheme in this way could reach an additional 1.5 million seven to 16-year-olds across England.

The petition also calls for free meals to be provided throughout holidays, as well as during term time.

Finally, it says Healthy Start vouchers – given to eligible women who are pregnant or those with young children to buy basic foods – should be raised from £3.10 to £4.25 per week and made available to all those on Universal Credit or a similar benefit.

Across the UK, tens of thousands of people have signed the petition since it went live on Thursday morning.

The campaign is UK-wide but decisions around school meals are devolved. The Welsh Government said just before the petition was launched that it will provide free meals for all school holidays until Easter next year.

The Argus: File photo dated 28/08/09 of a pupil collecting their school dinner as a group of leading doctors have warned that scrapping free school meals for infants would be “short-sighted” because the scheme could help alleviate the obesity crisis. PRESS ASSOC

Marcus Rashford forced the Government into a U-turn over holiday food vouchers during the pandemic earlier this year.

“Child food poverty in the UK is not a result of Covid-19. We must act with urgency to stabilise the households of our vulnerable children,” said the footballer, who was recently awarded an MBE for services to vulnerable children.

“In 2020, no child in the UK should be going to bed hungry, nor should they be sat in classrooms concerned about how their younger siblings are going to eat that day, or how they are going to access food come the holidays.”

The Government appeared to reject the calls for further help, with a spokesman saying: "We are in a different position now with schools back open to all pupils."

The Argus:

Across England, around 1.4 million children have the right to claim free school meals.

But the Food Foundation think tank, which is working on the campaign, estimated that nearly 1 million additional children have recently been registered for the scheme as Covid-19 drives more families into poverty.

Anna Taylor, the charity’s executive director, said: “While children have been spared the virus, they have not been spared it’s economic impacts and we must act to protect them.”

A government spokeswoman said: “We have taken substantial action to make sure children and families do not go hungry by extending free school meals when schools closed, increasing welfare support by £9.3 billion, and giving councils £63 million to provide emergency support to families for food and other essentials.

“We also appreciate it has been a challenging time for families, which is why we have increased the safety net available to them with income protection schemes, mortgage holidays and support for renters.

“We are grateful to Marcus Rashford for his work shining a light on the significant challenges families are facing at this time.”

Brighton and Hove 

As of around 4pm on Thursday, 667 people in Brighton and Hove’s three constituencies had signed the petition urging the Government to take action.

In Brighton and Hove’s constituencies, 5,953 children were eligible for free schools meals in the last school year, the latest Department for Education figures show.

Eastbourne

As of around 4pm on Thursday, 113 people in Eastbourne’s constituency had signed the petition urging the Government to take action.

In Eastbourne’s constituency, 2,802 children were eligible for free schools meals in the last school year, the latest Department for Education figures show.

Chichester

As of around 4pm on Thursday, 198 people in Chichester’s two constituencies had signed the petition urging the Government to take action.

In Chichester’s constituencies, 2,406 children were eligible for free schools meals in the last school year, the latest Department for Education figures show.

Lewes

As of around 4pm on Thursday, 262 people in Lewes’s two constituencies had signed the petition urging the Government to take action.

In Lewes’s constituencies, 3,658 children were eligible for free schools meals in the last school year, the latest Department for Education figures show.

Mid Sussex

As of around 4pm on Thursday, 395 people in Mid Sussex’s three constituencies had signed the petition urging the Government to take action.

In Mid Sussex’s constituencies, 3,152 children were eligible for free schools meals in the last school year, the latest Department for Education figures show.

Worthing

As of around 4pm on Thursday, 214 people in Worthing’s two constituencies had signed the petition urging the Government to take action.

In Worthing’s constituencies, 2,901 children were eligible for free schools meals in the last school year, the latest Department for Education figures show.