Families of children and young people in full-time education at any school maintained by Leicestershire County Council may be entitled to claim free school meals, providing they receive a qualifying benefit. The current criteria for claiming free school meals are as follows:
- 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 guaranteed 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.
Currently all children entitled to free school meals will receive them until the end of the academic year 2025/26. This continues even if your income increases. This is called transitional protection.
From the start of the 2026/27 academic year, it is the Department for Education’s intention that all protections will be discontinued, alongside an extension to the eligibility criteria for free school meals. From this point, households must meet the eligibility criteria to be entitled to free school meals.
