Free School Meals
Who is eligible for free school meals and the pupil premium?
If you meet the qualifying criteria listed below, completing an application could help your children's school get valuable extra funding through the pupil premium:
- Income support
- Income-based jobseeker's allowance
- Income-related employment and support allowance
- National asylum seeker support
- 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)
- The guaranteed element of state pension credit
- Working tax credit run-on - paid for four weeks after you stop qualifying for working tax credit.
- Universal credit with annual net earned income of less than £7,400
How to apply for free school meals
You should only apply for free school meals if you receive one of the benefits listed above. For universal infant free school meals, speak to your child's school.
Please note:
- By applying for free meals, you could raise valuable extra funding for your child’s school through the Pupil Premium. It is therefore important to complete this form even if your child is in reception, year 1 or year 2 and gets a free meal automatically, in order to ensure that the school receives as much funding as possible.
- You do not need to renew your application each year unless your child is a sixth form pupil. Once granted, your child’s free school meals will continue until they finish Year 11, unless your circumstances change and you no longer meet the qualifying criteria.
- Sixth Form students attending Leicester City schools must re-apply each year.
- You do not need to send any proof of benefits to us at this stage. If we do need to see evidence at any time, we will contact you.
- Claims can only be processed upon receipt of a fully completed, valid application form, and cannot be backdated.
- Please ensure that you sign the form before sending it to us.
- Pupils who are in foster care are not entitled to free school meals if their foster parents are paid a fostering allowance.
The FSM team will carry out frequent eligibility checks by means of the DfE’s online Eligibility Checking Service. Vouchers will be cancelled where eligibility has ceased. Schools will be notified of cancellations as soon as possible. Parents/carers should inform the school if they are no longer eligible to claim free school meals.
Get in touch
If you have any questions on free school meals or need support with your application, please email: education-fsm@leicester.gov.uk or call 0116 454 1009 (option 3).