Free School Meals

Additional funds come into school for all students on Free School Meals.   If your child is entitled to Free School Meals then the school could claim additional funding to support their needs.  For this reason we would urge all parents/carers who are entitled to them to apply.

The Free School Meal Daily Allowance will automatically be added to your child’s account on the cashless system.  This system removes the need for queuing for FSM tickets and allows students to remain anonymous.  No one will know you have registered and it will not affect any other benefits you are claiming.

Around 18 million UK children are entitled to free school meals but more than 330,000 students don’t get their entitlement.  Often parents do not realise that they are entitled to them.

Children who eat well during the day concentrate better in lessons.  Sitting down to a meal together is an important part of a child’s social education.

Other reasons why free school meals are important:

• 7% of school children don’t eat breakfast
• Up to 10% of children are deterred from buying lunch at school by the cost (the average amount spent on a school meal is £2.35)
• Research found students scored higher in tests when the nutritional content of school meals was improved
• Weight-for-weight, UK students eat 4 times as much confectionery as green vegetables
• In an average class of 30 children, 6 students will not eat any fruit in a week

In England 21% of students are eligible for free school meals.  You can register your child for Free School Meals if you get any of these benefits:

• Income support; or
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Pension Credit (Guarantee Credit); or
• Child Tax Credit (CTC) as long as you are not getting an amount for childcare paid with your CTC, or getting Working Tax Credit. HM Revenue and Customs must also have worked out your household income as £16,190 a year or less.  This income limit will be used until April 2016 buy may go up in future years; or
• Universal Credit; or
• A Working Tax Credit “run-on” payment for four weeks after stopping work or reducing working hours to under 16 hours a week

You can also claim if you are an asylum seeker

If you think you child could be entitled to Free School Meals contact MCC Revenues and Benefits unit on 0161 234 5003 (Manchester residents) or Trafford Revenues and Benefits Unit on 0161 921 2000 (Trafford residents) to discuss the matter further.

Parents and carers are responsible for liaising with the benefits department and ensuring the claim is processed as quickly as possible. Please note that the Academy has the right to refuse free lunches if we feel the claim is not progressing appropriately.