Free school meals

All children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are entitled to a hot free school meal.

You still need to apply for free school meals if you get any eligible benefits. This helps your child's school can get extra funding.

Who can apply

Your child may be able to get free school meals if you get any of the following:

Income Support
income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
income-related Employment and Support Allowance
support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
the guaranteed element of Pension Credit
Child Tax Credit (provided you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190)
Working Tax Credit run-on - paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
Universal Credit - if you apply on or after 1 April 2018 your household income must be less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including any benefits you get)

Children who get these benefits directly can also get free school meals.

Your child might also get free school meals if you get any of these benefits and your child is:

You need to apply through the parent portal. The portal allows you to:

Make sure you verify your email address before completing your application.

If you already have an account, you can go straight to the portal to complete your free school meals application.

If we need more information, we’ll email you to ask for proof of your benefits.

Once we’ve checked that your child can get free school meals, we’ll let their school know.

We’ll also tell you when the free meals will begin.

All communications about free school meals will be sent via email.