Today marks a landmark moment in English education with every single child in the first three years of school now eligible for a free lunch every day of the week, the Department for Education has announced.

In over 16,500 schools, 1.89 million children in primary school will be able to enjoy a "nutritious meal" at lunchtime at no cost to their parents or guardian. This will help save families up to £400 a year, the government said.

Moreover, access to a healthy lunch will go a long way in boosting attainment levels and help youngsters better perform in the classroom. This is backed up by research, with studies showing that children benefiting from school meals can be two months ahead of their peers in subjects like English and maths.

Schools minister David Laws said that the coalition government's goal to standardise free school meals across the country has today become a reality, benefiting mums and dads (more cost-effective) and youngsters (healthy lunches) alike.

"Providing children with nutritious and delicious meals gives them the fuel they need to excel both inside and outside the classroom, while making them more likely to opt for fruit and vegetables at lunchtime rather than junk food such as crisps," he continued.

"Schools across the country have done a truly fantastic job in preparing for this important milestone, supported by over £1 billion of government funding over the next two years. Together, we will make sure that this landmark achievement delivers for pupils’ health, their attainment, and for their hard-working families."

Mr Laws added that as things stand, he expects 98 per cent of primary schools to be in a position to deliver free school meals ahead of the start of the new academic year. Those that are not quite ready – in terms of having the facilities safely installed – will provide cold meals in the interim.

Speaking to the BBC, Carrieanne Bishop, board member and director of the Lead Association for Catering in Education, lauded the efforts of thousands of school cooks, caterers, teachers and council staff.

She described the policy as being an "overwhelmingly" positive development that will "bring a whole raft of benefits" to everyone – schools, parents, teachers and children – today and in the future.

Deputy prime minister Nick Clegg said that he was especially delighted that free school meals has finally become part of the fabric of the education system in England, describing it as a "personal priority" of his.

"This is one of most progressive changes to our school system for a long time so there’ll always be critics but that won’t cloud my goal to create a level playing field for all of our children so their success will be determined by their talents and efforts alone and not by their parents’ bank balance," he concluded.