A pre-school breakfast scheme which was in danger of folding has been saved thanks to the Coalition for the Protection of Children.

The charity has stepped in with sponsorship to ensure the programme, run by the Feed the Children Ministries of the the Seventh-day Adventist Church, can continue in the West End.

Coalition executive director Nicola Feldman said: “We are helping to purchase the supplies they needed, because otherwise they weren’t going to be able to run the programme.

“They provide breakfasts for 40 students and by giving them the supplies we can help them to continue doing that.”

The Coalition runs its own pre-school breakfast scheme for some 175 children on the Island, but it doesn’t extend to the West End.

Ms Feldman said the Seventh-day scheme had suffered because of fewer donations during tough economic times.

“There was a lack of funding,” she said. “They did not have the funding and were not able to run the breakfast programme.”

She said many children in Bermuda were sent to school without breakfast, often because struggling families can’t afford high food prices.

“So many people are unemployed and financial assistance is limited,” she said. “It’s well known that breakfast is the most important meal that a young person can have in a day. It makes them more focused; academic achievement is higher when students have had breakfasts.”

The 40 students who will benefit are from various schools and have all been referred by their school counsellors. The sponsorship will ensure they get milk, fruit, cereal and granola bars.

Ms Feldman said: “In difficult economic times, it is imperative that agencies work together to ensure that the needs of Bermuda’s families are met. The Coalition is delighted to be able to assist Feed the Children Ministries while it has the capacity to do so.”