School Dinners  

Menu Sept 2023 - Oct 2023

Menu Nov 2023 -Feb 2024

Sholden School has meals provided by Whole School Meals a local company who works with the vast majority of schools in the area. As we are a small school we do not have our own kitchen and as a result our dinners are cooked at another local primary school and then delivered to school for serving.

 All  children in Year R, 1 and 2 are entitled to a Universal Free School Meal (UIFSM), this means that if you have a child in Ducklings Class or Kingfishers Class they will be eligible for a free school dinner until Key Stage 2.

Key Stage 2 children pay for their meals at  £2.30 per meal (WSM can increase the price but notice will be given). You can pay electronically via the Parentmail App. 

*Unless you fill in this application, which will then tell you if your are entitled to FSM. We strongly suggest that you fill in this application before your child starts in Ducklings class, and continue to update this form with any change in your personal circumstances. 

More information on how to pay and how the system make your life easier, please see:

 Parent Mail Letter 11.02.19

You can find out more information about our school dinner provider Whole School Meals by clicking here: Whole School Meals

Payment Via Parent Mail

Additionally, payment for school dinners can be made online by clicking on the icon below.

Alternatively packed lunches can be brought in from home. In the interest of health generally, children are allowed to eat fruit or vegetables at break time. All Key Stage 1 children receive free fruit and are asked to bring a water bottle to school. For advice about healthy packed lunch boxes please click on the link : NHS Lighter Lunchboxes

*Important Information regarding School Dinners and Free School Meals

Universal Infant Free School Meals (UIFSM) and Free School Meals (FSM)

UIFSM = Universal infant free school meals (UIFSM) provides funding for all government funded schools to offer free school meals to pupils in reception, year 1, and year 2 only.

FSM= This is via application only and applies to ALL school years.

Please find below a few facts about this forthcoming initiative which you may find useful and which might answer some of your questions.

1. UIFSM are not the same as Free School Meals (FSM). Although using similar terminology can be very confusing!

2. FSM are for those children whose family may not have the financial means to pay for their meals- there are various criteria which need to be met and once they are the child will be entitled to Free School Meals regardless of their age.

3. If you think that you might meet the criteria for FSM then you can apply on line and should be able to get an instant decision. Alternatively, speak to the office who will be able to assist in this.

4. Any child who is eligible for FSM also attracts additional funding (Pupil Premium)to help that child at school  so of course for schools and pupils it is really helpful that parents continue to apply for FSM.

5. If you do not apply for FSM, when your child moves to KS2 they will no longer get a free school meal as the new scheme of UIFSM only applies to  Years R, 1 and 2 and the school will miss out on extra funding.

6. Children already receiving FSM will be unaffected by this change to the meals.

UIFSM

1. All children in Year R, 1 and 2 are entitled to a free school meal (UIFSM) however this does not mean that these children have to have a school dinner they can still have a packed lunch.

2. Funding is on the basis of the number of children who take up the infant school meals on a specific day and it would really help us if on this day that we could encourage as many children as possible to have the meals. For example if 10 children have meals on this day we will get funding for 10, if later down the line 20 children decide they want it the school will have to find the funding from its main budget which will mean less money to spend on other areas! So it is really important that as many children as possible have the meals on this day.

3.