Free school meals for infants
All children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 can get free schools meals whether the parents receive benefits or not.
If you receive benefits it is still important that you to complete a free school meals application, even if you don’t want your child to receive a free meal.
Your child’s school will get extra government funding for every child registered as eligible for a free school meal if their parents receive benefits. This funding is to support learning and is called the ‘pupil premium’.
Other year groups
Children in other year groups, including in secondary schools, could be eligible for free school meals if their parents receive any of the following types of benefit:
- Universal Credit – if your annual net earned income is no more than £7,400 (after tax and not including any benefits you get)
- Income Support
- income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- the guaranteed element of Pension Credit
- Child Tax Credit (provided you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190)
- Working Tax Credit run-on – paid for four weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit.
Young people who receive income support or income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance in their own right are also entitled to free school meals.
Children must go to a Brent primary school, secondary school, sixth form or nursery attached to a Brent school where they attend for a full day (sessions before and after lunch).
All children in households with no recourse to public funds are entitled to Free School Meals, subject to maximum income thresholds.
Full details on free school meals are available on the Department for Education website.
Applicants from this cohort will need to apply by completing the application form on the Department of Education website and e-mailing it to school.admissions@brent.gov.uk