Free school meals

Eligibility for free school meals

Eligibility for benefits-based free school meals

Eligibility criteria

The eligibility criteria for free meals can be found at Free school meals | East Sussex County Council.

From September 2026 there will be two benefits-based FSM categories:

Targeted FSM covering pupils who are in households in receipt of Universal Credit with annual household earnings of £7,400 or less (existing threshold). These children will attract Pupil Premium and be eligible for the HAF programme.
Expanded FSM covering pupils who do not qualify for targeted FSM, but who are in households receiving Universal Credit. They will only receive free meals and do not attract Pupil Premium or be eligible for the HAF programme.

Children must attend school both before and after the lunch period to receive a free meal. Please do not supply a free meal until entitlement has been verified by the Free School Meals team.

Reasonable adjustments and making alternatives

Schools are required to make reasonable adjustments for disabled pupils to ensure they are not put at a substantial disadvantage in relation to accessing meals. Schools are best placed to determine the exact nature of a reasonable adjustment in relation to food provision, taking into account the individual circumstances of the child and their family, as well as schools’ obligations under the school food standards.

It is good practice for the school to make a record of what reasonable adjustments have been agreed and ensure that all staff who work with the individual pupil are aware.

Schools should similarly take appropriate action in supporting pupils to access food provision in cases where the pupil has a food allergy or dietary requirement.

Schools Access Module (SAM)

Schools with access to SAM (excluding academies that process FSM applications) can view a child’s FSM status in SAM.

Please read the guidance free schools meals in SAM [969.7 KB] [pdf] about how to use SAM including how to generate your own report.

In year applications and transfers

All children must be verified by us before free school meals can be given.

Tell us by email when a child transfers from another East Sussex school. We can let you know if they are eligible. We will amend their attendance if you supply their start date. If we cannot verify an entitlement, you must get the parent to apply.

We will need an application for all children coming from an out-of-area school.

No recourse to public funds (NRPF)

The DfE has permanently extended free school meal eligibility to children in all households with no recourse to public funds (NRPF), subject to maximum income thresholds. We cannot use the online checking system to confirm eligibility for these families. Instead, please get the applicant complete the application form on GOV.UK and return it to us.

The eligible groups include, but may not be limited to children of:

Zambrano carers
families who have no recourse to public funds with a right to remain in the UK on grounds of private and family life under Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights
families receiving support under Section 17 of the Children Act 1989 who are also subject to a no recourse to public funds restriction
a subset of failed asylum seekers supported under Section 4 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
Chen carers
families holding a BN(O) passport
spousal visa holders
work visa holders
student visa holders
those with no immigration status.

Find examples of the documents that can be provided as evidence of the parent’s status.

Confirming income

The annual household income thresholds for those families able to work are: