Free School Meals Entitlement (FME)

Dear Parent/Carer,

Free School Meals Entitlement (FME) 

I am writing to you with regard to Free School Meals and to encourage you to claim them, if you are eligible.   Free School Meals entitlement involves a daily allowance of money for food at the cafeteria. The money goes on the child’s Young Scot card at 9.30am each day and only they know it is there. The Free Meals entitlement can be spent on breakfast or snack at morning break or for lunch at lunchtime. 

Each valid FME claim attracts additional funding to the school. For every pupil registered with Dundee City Council as eligible under the entitlement criteria below, the school will receive additional funding in the school budget called the Pupil Equity Funding (£1,200 per child) which we can use to help raise achievement levels for every pupil in the school. 

Your child can get free meals in school if you get:

• Universal Credit (where your monthly earned income is not more than £610)
• Income Support
• income-based Job Seeker's Allowance
• income-based Employment and Support Allowance
• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

Your child is also entitled to free school lunches if you get:

• Child Tax Credit, but not Working Tax Credit, and your income is less than £16,105
• both Child Tax Credit and Working Tax Credit and have an income of up to £7,330

16-18 year olds

16-18 years old who receive any of the above benefits can also claim free school lunches.

Getting free lunches if you're not getting benefits or tax credits

Your child might still get a free lunch in school  if you're experiencing financial hardship. This could be because:

• your immigration status means you can not get help from the government
• you're still waiting on your first Universal Credit notice

Your child may also be able to get a free lunch if at any point since they were aged 2 they've been:

• looked after
• had a Kinship Care Order
• had a Guardianship Order

   

  Parents can complete a simple on-line application form at:

   

  https://www.dundeecity.gov.uk/service-area/children-and-families-service/education/school-meals 

   

  We very much appreciate your time and support with this matter. If you do have difficulty completing the form please let us know and we will certainly help. This is an important way of helping us achieve more for all the young people at Grove.

  Yours Sincerely.

  Graham W Hutton

  Rector