School meals

Advance Warning - The application portal will be unavailable from the 20/07/26 - 17/08/26, to enable migration to a new system. 

The Government has released new guidance on the eligibility criteria for benefits-based Free School Meals (FSM). 

There are three main areas of change that come into effect from the start of the 2026/27 academic year. 

1) Transitional protection ends on 31/07/2026

This means ALL children with existing entitlement will be rechecked for eligibility on the Government's ECS checker prior to September 2026. The outcome of that eligibility check will be sent to parents and schools. There is no need to reapply if you are currently entitled to Free School Meals. 

2) From September 2026 there will be 2 categories of benefits-based free school meals. 

Targeted FSM, which continues to be based on the existing threshold, covering pupils who are in households in receipt of Universal Credit with annual household earnings of £7400 or less. 

Expanded FSM, a new category covering pupils who do not qualify for targeted FSM, but who are in households receiving Universal Credit. 

All application submitted from 01/06/2026 will be assessed against the new criteria. 

3) Pupil Premium eligibility remains at the same threshold. 

Previously if you were entitled to Free School Meals you were also entitled to Pupil Premium (PP), which is additional funding schools get to support children from families with very low income. Under the new guidance, children will only be entitled to Pupil Premium if they met the criteria for Targeted FSM. Parents do not need to take any action; this will all be checked and any eligibility for Pupil Premium will be communicated to your child's school, if applicable. 

Free school meals

IMPORTANT NOTE:  There are two types of free school meals. All reception, year 1 and year 2 children are automatically entitled to a free school meal as part of the Government’s Universal Infants Free School Meal Programme (UIFSM). No application is required for this type, it is given automatically. If your child is in any other year group, free school meals will not be awarded unless you are awarded benefits-based Free School Meals. 

If families are entitled to benefits-based free school meals in any year group, and meet the governments earning threshold for Targeted FSM, the school will also receive pupil premium funding for each eligible child. This is why it is best to apply for Benefits related FSM if you think you could be entitled, even if your child is receiving UIFSM. The funding can be used for a range of interventions. To find out more about how this funding is used at your child’s school, please contact the school directly. 

Who is eligible for benefits based free school meals

From the start of the 2026 to 2027 academic year, FSM eligibility has been expanded to all children from households in receipt of Universal Credit regardless of household earnings. Free school meals are available to pupils in receipt of, or whose parents are in receipt of, one or more of the following benefits: 

• Universal Credit.

• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999.

A pupil is only eligible to receive a free school meal where:

• a claim for this support has been made.

• their eligibility has been verified by the school where they are enrolled or by the local authority.

• they attend a state-funded school in the Thurrock area. If your child attends a school outside of Thurrock, you must apply to the council for the area in which they attend school. 

• If attending a state funded nursery school, they must be receiving full-time education, or if part time, must be receiving education both before and after the lunch period.

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

• have an FSM entitled child in education other than school (EOTAS). The support may form part of any EOTAS package agreed with the SEN department.

You may also be able to claim free school meals for your child if you have 'no recourse to public funds' – for example, if you cannot claim benefits.

When you must apply

You must make a new application for your child to start receiving free school meals, even if their siblings already receive free school meals. You also need to apply if you move into Thurrock from another area, even if you have been assessed as eligible for free school meals in the area you moved from.

When you don't have to apply

You don't have to make a new application

• At the start of each school year – even if your child's school says you should. Once you have applied and been entitled, we will recheck your application for eligibility as necessary in line with government guidance, which is currently annually ahead of each school year. 

• If your child changes their school in-year within Thurrock. The entitlement will move over automatically.

• If your child moves from primary to secondary school within Thurrock. We will undertake checks to ensure your child is still eligible and will notify your child’s secondary school accordingly.

How to apply

To make a new application, you must use the online form below. When applying, select 'create an account' if you don't already have a Thurrock Council account for free school meals, free 2 year-old childcare or school admissions.

When we receive your details

We process applications within 5 working days. If we ask you to provide evidence, you must send it to us within 2 weeks using the email address below.

After your details have been processed, we will send you an email telling you the outcome. If your child is entitled, we will:

• tell your child's school that your child is entitled to free school meals.

• let you know that this entitlement has been confirmed.

Entitlements are never backdated. Your entitlement starts from the date your application is assessed as entitled as per government guidance.

Continued eligibility

We will recheck your application for eligibility as necessary in line with government guidance, which is currently annually ahead of each school year. You do not need to reapply annually.

Contacting us

Do not contact us to ask how your application is progressing. All applications are processed on a date of submission basis within our 5 working day turnaround time. For any other queries please use the contact details below.