Reception, year 1 and year 2
The government's school food plan provides funding for government-funded primary schools in England to offer a free lunch to every child in their reception classes, year 1 and year 2.
Year 3 and above
Your child may be able to get free school meals if you receive any of the following:
- 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 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
- Universal Credit: if you apply on or after 1 April 2018, your household income must be less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including any benefits you get)
Applying for free school meals
We use the Department for Education's free school meals eligibility checking system, meaning you will receive an instant result notification, and the school will be informed.
To apply, you will be required to register and provide:
- your National Insurance Number or National Asylum Support Service Reference Number
- your family name
- your date of birth
- you may also be required to upload a copy of your benefit document
Check your eligibility and apply for free school meals
Currently all children entitled to free school meals will receive them until they finish either primary or secondary education. This continues even if your income increases. This is called transitional protection.
Although access to this protection was due to end on 1 April 2025, the Prime Minister has announced that the protection will continue until the start of the new school year in September 2026. All students who have been eligible on or after 1 April 2018 will remain protected until at least 1 September 2026.
The Prime Minister also announced that all families in receipt of Universal Credit, regardless of the amount of money paid from employment, will be eligible for free school meals from 1 September 2026.
If you'd like any further support, please contact the free school meals team, email checking@derbyshire.gov.uk or telephone: 01629 536481.
Pupil premium funding
Pupil premium funding is additional funding for schools to improve educational outcomes for disadvantaged pupils in England.
Pupil premium is not a personal budget allocated to individual eligible pupils. It's funding awarded to schools based on the number of eligible pupils on roll.
It is at the discretion of the school leaders to determine how best to spend the pupil premium within the requirements of the conditions set by the government.
The link between free school meals and pupil premium funding
All infant pupils are entitled to free school meals.
However, it's still important that schools know which infant pupils meet the benefit criteria for free school meals. This is because the school receives pupil premium and formula funding based on the number of pupils that are eligible for free school meals.