Free School Meals

Families with children attending school in Newham should ensure we have a free school meal claim for their child in our system, irrespective of the family’s financial or immigration status.  This is to support all families as we can review all children on a weekly basis, throughout the time their child is attending school in Newham, to see if they are currently entitled and automatically update their claim status with their school.

Families whose children move from a school in Newham to one in another local authority, or who choose Elective Home Education, must ensure that we have a new claim in our system if they later return to school in Newham, as their old claim would have ended when they were removed from the register of their previous school in Newham.

Eligibility 

Your child/ren may receive free school meals if you get any of the following benefits:

• 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 guarantee 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)

Children who get paid these benefits directly, instead of through a parent or guardian, can also get free school meals.

Note: from September 2026 the Department for Education will introduce new eligibility criteria meaning that all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit will be entitled to receive a free meal. This means the published income threshold for those in receipt of Universal Credit will no longer apply when deciding if a child is entitled to free school meal.