Apply for free school meals

Free school meals are available for children in primary and secondary schools if their parents or guardians receive certain benefits (see eligibility criteria below). Through the Universal Infant Free School Meal scheme children in Reception, Year 1 and 2 classes automatically receive free school meals. If you register for free school meals, not only could your child get a school dinner for free, but you can also get help with other things like school transport and entry to free holiday clubs with food. Your child's school will also get extra money to help support children in school.

If you get Council Tax Reduction and have a child of school age (reception to year 11) you will shortly receive a letter about a new pilot programme. As part of the programme we will carry out a check to see if you are eligible for benefits related free school meals. If you do not wish to have your eligibility checked you can opt out by emailing FSMoptout@durham.gov.uk with your name and address.

If you are eligible your child's school will be in touch.

If you have not received a letter you can apply in the usual way.

Eligibility criteria

Any child may qualify for a free school meal if you receive one of the following benefits:

Universal Credit with an annual earnings threshold that does not exceed £7,400.
Income Support.
Income Based Jobseekers Allowance.
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance.
Child Tax Credit (provided a parent is not entitled to Working Tax Credit) and have an annual income, as assessed by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, that does not exceed £16,190.
Working Tax Credit run on - paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit.
Guaranteed Element of State Pension Credit.
Support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.

Children may also be eligible for additional benefits such as help with holiday activities or travel to school, so it is worth applying, even if your child receives free school meals through the Universal Infant Free School Meal scheme.

Apply for free school meals

You can pick up an application form at your child's school or print one off from this page. Schools have a choice of which application form they use so if you are unsure which form to complete please check with your school. If you have more than one child at different schools you will need to complete a separate form for each school. Please return the completed application form to the school.

Apply and allow us to check your eligibility

Free school meals application form (no paperwork required) (PDF, 35 KB)

For this application you won't need to supply proof of your eligibility as you give us permission to check the council's and the Department for Education's records on your behalf.

Apply and provide proof of your eligibility

Free school meals application form (paperwork required) (PDF, 30 KB)

For this application you must provide the school with proof of eligibility for the relevant benefit.

Changes to free school meal entitlement - universal credit rollout

From April 2018 the criteria used to determine which pupils are eligible for free school meals was updated to reflect the introduction of Universal Credit and the phasing out of other income-based benefits.

Transitional protection as part of Universal Credit rollout

To make sure families are not disadvantaged during this rollout, protection arrangements have been put in place.

This means that:

Any child eligible for free school meals on 31 March 2018 will retain their eligibility until the end of the rollout, March 2025 regardless of whether their circumstances change.
Any child who becomes eligible during the rollout of universal credit (from 1 April 2018 to 31 March 2025) will retain their eligibility until the end of the rollout, March 2025 regardless of whether their circumstances change.
Once the rollout of universal credit is complete, no child will lose their entitlement and will continue to be transitionally protected until the end of their current phase of education (i.e. primary or secondary).

Secondary schools may or may not ask you to complete free school meal paperwork again as part of their induction process but this would not affect your entitlement if you were currently eligible.

Contact School meals