Free School Meals Eligibility Checker

Pupil Premium – Additional Government Funding For Schools

The government supports a Pupil Premium Strategy which is their commitment to pay schools £1,320 a year for each pupil registered as entitled to free school meals (even if you opt for your child to have packed lunches). Schools will receive the extra payment through the premium for every child registered as eligible for free school meals (FSM) at any point in the past six years and children in care who have been looked after for six months, or the children of service personnel.

Eligibility for free school meals can save you hundreds of pounds a year and our school will benefit from the government payment which may be used to fund new educational materials, funding towards educational trips, extra-curricular clubs and holiday activities or extra support for your child.

Free school meals may be provided for your children if you are receiving any of the following benefits:

• Universal Credit (your household income must be less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including any benefits you get)
• Income Support
• Income-based Job Seeker's Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• The guarantee element of Pension Credit
• Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• Child Tax Credit (provided you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit) and have an annual gross income of less than £16,190
• Working Tax Credit run-on (paid for four weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit)
• National Asylum Support Service (NASS).

If you are uncertain as to whether you qualify for Free School Meals, please refer to the Free School Meals Eligibility Checker details overleaf.

Applying for Free School Meals

Please complete an online application form:

https://eforms.hounslow.gov.uk/ufs/ufsmain?formid=A161_FREE_SCHOOL_MEALS&SUBMIT_AGAIN=N&ebz=1_1594038225361&ebd=0&ebz=1_1594038225361

If you require any further information about Free School Meals, please contact the Information and Advice Centre on 020 3949 7743 or email schoolmeals@hounslow.gov.uk.

If you do not have access to a computer, or would like to discuss any aspects of this letter in complete confidence, please make an appointment with our Parent Support Worker via the school office.

Free School Meal Service

• Free service at http://fsm.lgfl.net
• Parents can test online to find out if they are eligible for free meals
• Parents who are eligible need to link their children to their own accounts for schools to be notified
• Parents with linked children can then have free AntiVirus software to use on home machines, by way of thanks for participating
• Schools use the admin section of the website to access submitted results
• Schools can use data to finish processing free school meal claims and related benefits such as free school transport and pupil premium