Register for free school meals to help out your school
If your child is eligible for free school meals, it’s worth registering them even if they’re not going to have the school lunch. This is because schools receive a ‘pupil premium’ – an extra payment for each eligible child which they can spend on useful services. Registering might also get you extra help for things like Residentials or school trips.
Around 1.8 million UK children are entitled to free school meals but more than 330,000 pupils don’t get their entitlement. For some children, the social stigma or even teasing attached to being on free dinners puts them off. Often parents don’t realise they’re entitled or are discouraged by the likely bureaucracy.
Does it matter?
Yes! Children who eat well during the day concentrate better in lessons. Sitting down to a meal together is an important part of children’s social education. Also, one child in four doesn’t get a hot dinner in the evening.
Eligibility
Your child may be able to get free school meals if you get any of the following:
- Universal Credit with a household income of less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including any benefits you get)
- Income-Based Jobseekers’ Allowance
- Income-Related Employment and Support Allowance
- Child Tax Credit, not entitled to Working Tax Credit and household income less than £16,190
- Support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- Guarantee element of State Pension Credit
- Income Support
- Working Tax Credit ‘run on’ – the payment you receive for a further four weeks after you finish work
If your claim was approved on or before 31 March 2025, your child’s eligibility for free school meals will be protected until they finish the phase of schooling (primary or secondary) they are in, even if your circumstances change.
If you have a younger child starting school in September and you are no longer eligible, they will not be protected because this would be a new claim.
Any claims approved after 1 April 2025, will not have transitional protection. Claims will be re-assessed on an annual basis.
New applications
If you have recently applied and have not received a confirmation email, please allow 5 working days before contacting us. Remember to also check your spam or junk email folder.
Changes to your circumstances
Contact us by email if: (see emails below)
- any of your personal details change
- you have changed address
- your child has changed schools
If your child is moving to another school in Lancashire, you do not need to reapply for free school meals. Just email us to let us know. We will tell the school if your child is eligible for free school meals.
If you are moving to Lancashire from another area you’ll need to make a new application. If your eligibility is protected but your circumstances have changed your your application may be refused. If this happens contact us to let us know and we will tell the new school and ensure your eligibility is protected.
Free school meals email addresses by area:
Lancaster, Morecambe, Wyre and Fylde (North)
Preston, South Ribble, Chorley and West Lancashire (South)
Hyndburn, Ribble Valley, Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale (East)
Proof of benefit
LCC uses the government benefits database to check entitlement for free school meals.
If it shows that you are not entitled, you may need to provide further proof of your entitlement so that we can check your claim again.
You can do this by providing us with a copy of one of the following documents:
- Your most recent Universal Credit award notice (paper award notice or screenshot of last month’s online statement).
- The letter showing the breakdown of income support payment.
- The letter showing the breakdown of jobseekers allowance or Employment Support Allowance.
- Your complete TC602 Inland Revenue tax credit award notice for the current tax year.
- Your Pension Credit M1000 award notice.
- NASS support notice or IS96 document. You must include your NASS reference number, Port reference number and the name of authority providing support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum act 1999
Families with no recourse to public funds (NRPF)
Children in households with no recourse to public funds (NRPF) are also eligible for free school meals. This is subject to a maximum income threshold and capital and savings limit for the family.
You can find more information in the free school meals guidance for schools and local authorities on GOV.UK.
Schools manage these applications. To apply, complete the application form and return it to the school:
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