School lunches cost £2.25 per day, £11.25 per week for families in Nursery, Years 3-6 who are not eligible for free school meals. These need to be paid online in advance.
From September 2014 the government introduced Universal Free School Meals for all children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2.
However, free school meals for disadvantaged pupils in nursery classes and at key stages 2-4 will continue, based on the existing free school meals eligibility criteria for those groups of pupils.
In England, children at key stages 2-4 in state-funded schools are entitled to receive FSM if their parents or carers are in receipt of any of the following benefits:
- Income Support
- Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- The guaranteed element of State Pension Credit
- Child Tax Credit (provided they are not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190, as assessed by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs)
- Working Tax Credit run-on – paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
- During the initial roll out of the benefit, Universal Credit
If your child is entitled to free school meals then you will need to apply through Brent Council.
For those parents whose children do not qualify for FSM they will need to either pay weekly for their child’s school lunches or provide a healthy packed lunch.
