If your child has free school meals, and you no longer receive benefits or there is a change in your immigration status, your child can still have a free school meal until the end of the Universal Credit Roll Out. The Government has said this will be no earlier than July 2025 for the protection period to end. This could be longer and will depend on when your child moves up to the next stage of education.

After July 2025 or your child moving up to the next stage of education which ever is later, your free school meals should continue unless your finances change.

We are unable to add any further siblings when you are no longer eligible under of the above criteria, however all children in Key Stage 1 children (those in reception, year 1 and year 2) will receive a Universal Infant Free School Meal regardless of any change of circumstances including economic or immigration status.

For claims made on our portal, we use the Eligibility Checking System provided by the Department for Education to reconfirm your economic entitlement. We will send you messages if there are any changes to your child's status. Please note the online checking system only confirms or denies your eligibility to claim free school meals: it does not give us any other information. If we cannot confirm your entitlement through this process, we will contact you to ask you to provide up-to-date evidence of the benefit you receive.

Please see the council’s privacy statement in regards to the use of your data.

If your child has moved to a different school during the current school year, known as in year transfers, you will need to make a new application once you have confirmed their start date.

If your child is moving up to a middle or high school their free school meal entitlement with normally move with them to the new school. You do not need to make a new application if you have accepted the school place offered. Please let us know if your child is going to a different school than the one that was accepted in Spring. 

If your child is starting school in September, we’ll give you a provisional answer when you apply and will confirm a final decision in July.

Please note: you will need to contact your school directly regarding the issuing of Free School Meal vouchers during school holidays.

The current government scheme for Universal Infant Free School Meals is not included in the school holiday voucher scheme.

Holiday vouchers will be allocated as follows for the rest of the 2025 financial year:

• Easter £15

Household Support Fund (HSF) is ending on 31 March 2026

Since 2021, the Council has provided supermarket food vouchers to families with school age children who are eligible for free school meals during school holidays. This has been possible because of funding provided by government through the Household Support Fund. This fund comes to an end on 31 March 2026. The government is introducing a new Crisis and Resilience Fund (CRF), which will operate under different guidance and eligibility criteria.

The Council is working with partners to establish the schemes that will be available through the new fund. Further details on CRF support and schemes will be communicated once arrangements are confirmed. Please visit the councils cost of living page for general information.

• Cost of living support