Free school meals – auto-enrolment
We’ve made it even easier for eligible families to get free school meals — helping your child eat well at school, giving your family extra support, and boosting funding for their school.
If your child qualifies, they’ll enjoy healthy, tasty meals every day at school and you could get extra help during the holidays. Many families in Central Bedfordshire already use this support — it’s a positive way to help with household costs and support your child’s education.
On this page you’ll find information about:
Auto-enrolment
Since September 2025, children who qualify for free school meals are automatically enrolled. This means you don’t need to apply – we use information we already have, such as your Council Tax Support and Housing Benefit details, to automatically process an application on your behalf.
If we believe your child is likely to be eligible, we will:
- write to you to explain that we think your child may qualify
- assess your application automatically unless you tell us not to
- let you and your child’s school know the outcome
If we’ve written to you and you’re happy for us to assess your application automatically, you don’t need to do anything.
If you don’t want us to apply on your behalf, you can opt out online.
Changes to free school meals from September 2026
From September 2026, all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit attending maintained schools and academies will be entitled to receive a free meal. This includes pupils in school-based nurseries and maintained nursery schools, if they attend before and after lunch.
There will be 2 categories of benefits-based free school meals:
- Targeted free school meals, based on the same criteria as the existing free school meals scheme
- Expanded free school meals, a new category covering pupils who do not qualify for targeted free school meals, but who are in households receiving Universal Credit
Targeted free school meals
Children from households in receipt of Universal Credit with annual household earnings of £7,400 or less, will be eligible for targeted free school meals.
In addition to receiving free meals, pupils eligible for targeted free school meals will attract pupil premium and other disadvantage funding for their schools.
Other education entitlements that have previously been linked to eligibility for free school meals, such as the Holiday Activities and Food programme (HAF) and the ‘extended rights’ element of school travel assistance, will be based on targeted free school meals.
Households qualifying for free meals because they are in receipt of support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999 will also be eligible for targeted free school meals.
Households in receipt of Income-related Employment and Support Allowance or the guarantee element of Pension Credit or households with families with no recourse to public funds (NRPF) may also be eligible for targeted free school meals.
Expanded free school meals
Children from households in receipt of Universal Credit, with annual household earnings exceeding £7,400 will be entitled to expanded free school meals. They will receive free meals, but will not qualify for other educational entitlements such as HAF, and their schools will not receive a pupil premium for them.
Ending transitional protections
Transitional protections for free school meals have been in effect since 1 April 2018. This has meant that pupils becoming eligible for free meals under the benefits-based criteria since then have retained their entitlement, even if their household circumstances have changed.
From 1 September 2026, transitional protections for free school meals will end. Households must meet the targeted or expanded free school meals eligibility criteria from the start of September 2026 to continue receiving free school meals.
Regular eligibility checks
Following the end of transitional protections, we will check all pupils’ entitlement to free school meals on a regular basis. We will write to you if you no longer qualify.
Who can get free school meals
Targeted free school meals are available to pupils in receipt of, or whose parents are in receipt of, one or more of the following benefits:
- Universal Credit (if your annual net earned income is £7,400 or less, as assessed over up to three of your most recent assessment periods)
- support under Part IV of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
They may also be entitled to targeted free school meals if their household:
- receives income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- receives the guarantee element of Pension Credit
- meets criteria set out in separate guidance for families with no recourse to public funds
Expanded free school meals are available from September 2026 only, to pupils in receipt of, or whose parents are in receipt of:
- Universal Credit (if your annual net earned income is over £7,400)
Benefits of getting targeted free school meals
If your child gets targeted free school meals, then as well as enjoying a healthy, tasty lunch at school every day, they can take part in free activities and events during the school holidays. We’ll contact you with details if they’re entitled.
Registering your entitlement also helps your child’s school get extra funding, known as the pupil premium. Schools use this money to support learning and development — for example by providing extra teaching, targeted programmes or wider opportunities.
Your child’s school will benefit from this funding even if your child does not take the meal, or if they are in reception, year 1 or year 2 and already get universal free school meals. By registering, you’re helping your child, their school and the wider school community — this funding benefits everyone.
When free school meals start
In most cases we can confirm your entitlement straight away. As soon as we confirm you qualify, we will tell your child’s school and your child can get free school meals from the date you apply or the date we complete our checks.
You only need to apply once for each child. We will contact you if your entitlement changes.
Universal free school meals
If your child is in reception, year 1 or year 2, they will get universal free school meals automatically. You do not need to apply. We will still use your information to enrol your child for benefits-based free school meals unless you opt out, so that your child’s school can receive extra funding if you qualify for targeted free school meals.
Students in further education and sixth form
If your child is aged 16 to 18 and attends a further education or sixth form college, please contact the college for information about free school meals. If your child attends a school sixth form, please contact us to apply.
Tell us about changes
We will check your entitlement to free school meals on a regular basis, using the information we hold and the information you give us. Please tell us straight away if:
- you no longer want free school meals
- a new partner joins your household
- you move house
- your child changes their name or school
- you change your name
- another child in your family starts school
- your child goes into care
- your child moves between parents or guardians
Contact us
Call 0300 300 8000 if you:
- want to report a change
- think you may qualify but have not heard from us
- have a question about your application