Free School Meals
Parents claiming some benefits can claim free school meals for any of their children who are registered at a Staffordshire school and who would normally be at school at lunch time. School meals are a good way to ensure that your child eats well at lunchtime and you can save yourself time and money.
Even if you don't want your children to have the meals, claiming them helps our school. The more eligible parents who claim meals, the more funding we receive.
Who can get free school meals?
The entitlement criteria from 1 April 2018 is -
- Income Support
- Income Based Job Seekers Allowance
- Income Related Employment and Support Allowance
- eligible for Child Tax Credit but not Working Tax Credit and the household income (as used by HMRC to assess tax credits) is not more that £16,190. Please note: anyone eligible for Working Tax Credit, or if you have a partner and they receive it, regardless of Income, you will not qualify
- The Guarantee element of State Pension Credit
- Support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- In receipt of the 4 week run on of working tax credit (this is where someone becomes unemployed or reduces their hours and so is no longer entitled to working tax credit but will continue to receive it for a further 4 weeks and is entitled to free meals during that time)
- Universal credit (provided you have an annual net earned household income of no more than £7,400 as assessed by earnings from up to three of your most recent assessment periods). Your net earned income is your household income after taxes and deductions and does not include income from Universal Credit or any other benefits you may receive.
Please register a claim with Staffordshire County Council if you think you meet the entitlement criteria above.
Free school meals for reception, year 1 and 2 children
From September 2014, if you have an infant age child (those in reception, year 1 or year 2) they can receive free school meals even if you don't meet the entitlement criteria and without completing an application for them. For more information contact your school.
Pupil Premium
For every pupil registered as eligible under the entitlement criteria, the school will receive extra funding. This is called the pupil premium. It is used to help raise achievement levels and we publish details of what we have spent it on and the impact it has had.
So that schools (and pupils) can continue to benefit from this extra funding it is important that parents who do meet the entitlement criteria continue to register their claim with Staffordshire County Council.
Please see information below from AiP regarding free school meals.