Changes to Free School Meals Entitlement from September 2026

The Government is introducing big changes to the Free School Meals System from 1st September 2026. From this date there will be 3 categories of Free School Meals (FSM):

• Universal Infant Free School Meals – all children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are eligible
• Targeted Free School Meals – children whose parents claim Universal Credit and earn less than £7,400 are eligible
• Expanded Free School Meals – children whose parents claim Universal Credit and earn more than £7,400 are eligible

Children who are eligible for any of these can have a free school meal every day.

Children who are eligible for Targeted Free School Meals, also benefit from Pupil Premium funding.  This enables us to offer free clubs, trips and a free item of uniform to these children.  They are also entitled to attend HAF holiday clubs.  Once a child is eligible for Pupil Premium, they will keep it until the end of Year 6.  Children who are eligible for Universal or Expanded FSM do not get these additional benefits.

The government is rechecking Free School Meals entitlement for Targeted and Expanded FSM, so from 1st September 2026, a child will only be eligible if their parents met the necessary criteria since 1st June 2026.  

Eligibility for Free School Meals

Targeted FSM

If you are a parent or carer, and receive any of the benefits listed below, then your child is eligible for Targeted Free School Meals (Targeted FSM).

• Universal Credit with annual household earnings of £7,400 or less
• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999

Households may also be entitled to a meal if they:

• are in receipt of income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• receive the guarantee element of Pension Credit
• meet criteria set out in separate guidance for families with no recourse to public funds

For children eligible for Targeted FSM the school will also receive extra funding from the Government to use in support of teaching and learning (Pupil Premium).

We will also provide your child with one free item of uniform, free school trips and free school clubs including after school clubs and holiday clubs.  They are also entitled to attend HAF holiday clubs. 

Expanded FSM

If you are a parent or carer, and receive Universal Credit with annual household earnings of more than £7,400 per year, then your child is eligible for Expanded Free School Meals (Expanded FSM).

Your child will be entitled to receive free school meals, but will not be eligible for any of the other free items.

Universal Infant Free School Meals

All pupils in Reception and Key Stage 1 in England are entitled to have a free lunch each day in school. This is known as Universal Infant Free School Meals (UiFSM). It is not the same as the means-tested FSM above, and does not allow the school to claim Pupil Premium for your child, and it DOES NOT include the other benefits, such as free uniform, free trips etc.

It is important, therefore that if you are eligible for the Free School Meals above, you claim for them if your child is in Reception or Key Stage 1.  We will ask you to provide your details when your child starts school.

How to Apply

When your child joins Arboretum, we will ask for your permission to register your details on our Free School Meals checking system.  Once your details are registered on the system, any changes will be automatically updated. So even if you are not currently eligible, you will be informed if you become eligible in the future.

If you wish to check for yourself, you can apply online by visiting https://www.cloudforedu.org.uk/ofsm/link2ict

Or you can request school to apply on your behalf by completing the form below.