Free school meals
Eligibility for free school meals
Eligibility criteria
The government sets the eligibility criteria for free meals. To find out more, visit Free school meals | East Sussex County Council. Please note, the criteria will change from the start of the 2026/27 school year to include all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit.
Children must attend school both before and after the lunch period to receive a free meal.
Some pupils who are over 16 may receive a qualifying benefit in their own right. If so, they will qualify to claim free school meals.
Refugee families are not automatically eligible and should apply.
Change of family circumstances
Since April 2018, pupils becoming eligible for free school meals under the benefits-based criteria will continue to receive free meals until the end of the 2025/26 school year. This applies, regardless of any change in household circumstances, including an increase in earnings above the eligibility threshold.
From the start of the 2026/27 academic year, households must meet the eligibility criteria to be entitled to free school meals.
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
East Sussex schools
Please tell us when a child transfers from another East Sussex school and the Common Transfer File shows they qualify for free school meals. We will amend their attendance and verify that they are eligible. Do not ask parents to apply.
Out-of-area schools
Give free school meals to children coming from an out-of-area school where the Common Transfer File indicates they qualify.
Complete the Movers in form [77.6 KB] [docx]
This is so we can create a database record and ensure reports are accurate.
Siblings of children who are entitled
You must not assume that siblings of children already verified for free school meals also qualify for free meals. All new requests require an application.
Check pupil premium for reception
We can check your reception intake for pupils who qualify for free school meals (FSM) to ensure you claim their pupil premium.
On the form to accept their child’s school place, parents may provide their:
- own date of birth
- National Insurance number
We need these details and their full name to check if a child qualifies.
Enter this data before you run the FSM report in your school management system. We do not process paper applications for this age group.
We will let you know the results. You can claim pupil premium for children who qualify.
How to submit the free school meals report
Schools using Arbor
- Please locate Free School Meals eligibility check from the Schools ICT MIS updates web page
Schools using SIMS
- SIMS instructions [615.1 KB] [pdf] on how to import and run the admissions FSM report
Contact Schools ICT for advice and support
Email: schoolsict@eastsussex.gov.uk
Phone: 01273 482519
When to submit your free school meals report
Supply your report after 1 September and by the third Friday in September.
This enables us to process it for the autumn census. We will process reports received after this date as soon as possible.
Please see our other pages about FSM criteria, reviewing eligibility and how we process applications.
