THOUSANDS of children are not claiming free school meals because of the stigma attached to poverty, says a report.

Some schools have separate queues for children receiving free meals and in others they must wait for their lunch until paying students have eaten.

The report, from a working party in Wearside, shows the area's secondary school children are bottom of the league nationally when it comes to claiming free school meals.

Sunderland was in the top quarter of councils in the country for the number of children entitled to free school meals last year.

But in the city's secondary schools, out of 5,584 children eligible for free meals, only 2,428 had them, a total of 43.5 per cent. The report concluded that some pupils felt stigmatised by the systems operating in schools.

The working party, which included councillors, teachers, governors and education officials, recommends a cashless system in school dining halls and other improvements.

They said pupils who take free meals can easily be identified, sometimes having to queue separately. Poor condition of dining halls, length of queues and absence of lunch-time activities were also a problem.

Some Newcastle schools have a system where students use swipe cards for meals, which maintains privacy.