PLEASE NOTE THAT AS OF 1ST APRIL 2024, DUDLEY COUNCIL NO LONGER PROCESS APPLICATIONS FOR FREE SCHOOL MEALS FOR FAIRHAVEN PRIMARY SCHOOL.

Who is eligible?

These are the Government’s eligibility criteria for benefits-related Free School Meals (FSM):

• 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. This is equal to £616.67 a month (after tax and not including any benefits you get) to qualify for benefits-related Free School Meals (FSM)

If you are entitled to Working Tax Credit (apart from during the four-week run-on period), you will not qualify for FSM, even if you have a low income.

If you are receiving Child Tax Credit only, your annual income must be less than £16,190 to qualify.

If your family has No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF), you may also be entitled to free meals. Please speak with your child’s school about this.

Apply for free school meals

To apply for Free School Meals, please speak to your child's school.

You will need to provide the school with:

• your full name
• date of birth
• and National Insurance (NI) number or National Asylum Support Service (NASS) reference number

Your child's school will then share your details with City of Wolverhampton Council. We check eligibility using a secure Government website.

If we find you eligible for FSM, your child's school will let you know. If we don’t find you eligible, we will continue to check your eligibility.

Schools receive valuable Government funding (Pupil Premium) for every child registered for FSM. Even if your child chooses not to eat school meals, we would still encourage you to register.

If your child already has an FSM claim in place, please do not apply again.

If you aren’t sure if your child has an FSM claim in place, please ask your child’s school.

If your child does not already have an FSM claim in place, the easiest way to apply is through your child’s school.