Children are encouraged to take a school meal at lunch time as they help provide part of a healthy balanced diet and encourage social eating habits. Our meals are excellent value and are prepared using locally sourced fresh ingredients on a daily basis by our School Cook and an Assistant.
Every day children have a choice of either a ‘meat’ dish, vegetarian option or Jacket Potato. The children collect their meals via lining up in the school hall, which doubles up as a dining room at lunchtime.
A menu is circulated at the beginning of each term showing the meal choices available to your child for each day of that term. At the start of each school day a dinner register will be taken by the class teacher and children choose which meal they would like e.g. main meal option or vegetarian option.
It is the current policy of our catering team that at the beginning of each half term parents/carers choose whether their child will be taking a school lunch or parents/carers will be providing a packed lunch on a daily basis. This is in order that our School Cook can order sufficient fresh and locally sourced provisions.
Payment for school meals are to be made online via Parent Pay www.parentpay.com . Once your child starts school you will receive a letter containing an activation code and password to enable you to set up your account with Parent Pay. If you do not have access to the internet, a Paypoint card can be ordered by the Admin team and you will be able to use this in the local shops or any other outlets displaying the PayPoint sign.
If your child misses a school meal for any reason you are credited with that days charge – you only pay for the meals that are physically taken. Current charges for meals are £3.06 per day for full-time children and £2.50 per day for those children in Nursery.
Children in Reception to Year 2 inclusive receive Universal Free School Meals.
The School cannot give meals on credit. Where debts accumulate a procedure exists to enable the County Council to collect the money on our behalf.
FREE SCHOOL MEALS
Some children may be eligible for free school meals. To apply, you need to complete an application form. These forms are available from the school office or, alternatively can be downloaded from www.northyorks.gov.uk
An application form for free school meals also available from School Office and Sally Johnson is happy to support parents completing the form. All information shared will be kept confidential.
Children whose parents/carers are in receipt of the following payments are entitled to free school lunch entitlement.
- Universal Credit, if you apply on or after 1st April 2018 your household income must be less than £7,400 a year (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 6 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 (as assessed by HMRC)
- Working Tax Credit run-on – paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
Children who receive any of the above benefits in their own right, are also entitled to Free School Meals.
Although some parents are uncomfortable with claiming for free school meals, we cannot stress enough that there is no way any other children will know that your child is having free school meals.
Children who qualify for free school meals, but whose families do not take up this opportunity are also missing out on extra educational support which the government fund to help them achieve their best. The Pupil Premium is only paid to school if the parent actually claims for free school meals.
Application forms are available online (NYCC website Free School Meals page) and should be posted to the Welfare Team in Harrogate (address on the form). There is no need to discuss the matter with anyone at school unless you would like some support or advice, in which case we will be happy to support you; we will receive automatic notification from NYCC should your application be successful.
Free School Meals can also be applied for confidentially online. Simply create (or login) to your Synergy Parent Portal Account and following instructions on the screen. https://fisportal.northyorks.gov.uk/Synergy/Login.aspx/?ReturnUrl=%2FSyn...
For more information, you can telephone NYCC Welfare Team on 01609 533405.