Starting the School Meals Journey
Do you have a little one starting school this September? The start of the academic year sees the transition of the Reception Year into ‘Big School!’.
For many children, this is an exciting time that they have been waiting for and they can’t wait to get their school uniform on! On the flip side, there are some that find the change a little too much and they’re nervous about starting school and having their lunch at school. They might begin asking questions like “what happens at lunchtime?” This is where we’re here to help! We have explained how it all works below, so that parents and guardians, feel equipped to answer any questions.
Our School Lunch Menu
Our school menus can differ from school to school, the easiest way to find the school menu you’re looking for is on our website. We have a school menu directory; all the schools that we cater for are listed alphabetically. Simply, scroll to find your school.
You’ll see that we have an ‘Online Menu’ - Lunchero on the web - and a ‘Printable Menu’ for anyone wanting to print the menu and stick it on their fridge.
Our school menus run on a three-weekly cycle.
Using Coloured Wristbands
In most of our schools, the teachers will have the meal options for the day (some schools have 3 options and others have 2 options). During morning registration children will be asked what meal they’d like - the meals are colour-coded, blue, yellow, or purple.
Depending on their choice they’ll be given the same colour wristband. They don’t have to worry about forgetting their meal choice. They simply show their wristband to the kitchen staff behind the servery and they then know which meal to dish up.
The Dining Room Experience
Please don’t worry about your little ones not being able to carry a tray or cut up their food. There’s lunchtime assistants available to help with this, especially with the children in reception year. Some schools even have Year 6 volunteers, as ‘lunchtime helpers’ and they’re there as an extra pair of hands.
Maybe try practicing at home over the summer holidays, carrying a plate or tray and using cutlery – make a game of it. This will help your child in those first few days at school.
Our kitchen team do encourage children to try new things, such as veggies or fruit but it’s completely up to the child. There’s no pressure to try something new but it’s celebrated when they do with a sticker or ‘well done’. Part of the lunch time experience is about building children’s confidence with new and different foods, textures and flavours. Simply trying is a great start!
Universal Infant Free School Meals
Good news! Universal Infant Free School Meals, means school meals are free for all of Key Stage One, meaning children in Yr R, 1 & 2 - regardless of your circumstances.
Free School Meals (FSM) are still available for some pupils, depending on your household income. If your child is in Key Stage One it is beneficial to apply for FSM - if eligible you’ll be entitled to discounts on school trips, and other expenses, as well as gain access to holiday support via the Holidays, Activities and Food programme (HAF).
Find out more about Free School Meals, here.
School Meal Recipes
We have our Cooking at Home page which is packed with tasty school meal recipes. Why not try cooking some of them with your little ones. It’s the perfect opportunity to find some of the dishes on their school menu and ‘taste test’ them. A nice way of introducing the school menu or new foods to them, in their own environment. There’s Cook-along-videos too!
Meat-Free Wednesdays
Every week, our standard menu has a meat-free Wednesday. This is for both environmental and health reasons. It’s a small change that we made a while back to reduce our meat consumption and increase the number of vegetables in our school meal recipes.
Our Accreditations
We create tasty school lunch menus that comply with two crucial standards: the Government’s School Food Plan, and the Soil Association Food For Life Bronze caterer award.
Find out more about this, here.