Catering

School meals are delivered by our Catering Team in the Dining Hall in Porter. A wide variety of hot and cold food is served at Break and Lunch times, which afford our students and staff a great deal of choice. Lunch Menus operate on a three-weekly cycle.

The new menus will appear at the beginning of the new term. 

The academy operates the CRB Cunninghams cashless catering system. This system is the latest biometric solution using fingerprint identification. Further information can be found on the company’s website at: www.crbcunnighams.co.uk

Drinking water is freely available and students are encouraged to bring in reusable bottles.

Who is eligible for free school meals?

If you are receiving one of the following benefits or support, your child will have the right to a free school meal:

  • Income Support
  • Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
  • Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
  • Child Tax Credit but not Working Tax Credit and your annual income is below £16,190 (as worked out by HM Revenue & Customs)
  • Guarantee element of State Pension Credit
  • Support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
  • Parents receiving Working Tax Credit for four weeks after their employment finishes are entitled to free school meals during that period. This also applies to parents who start working less than 16 hours per week.

You are not entitled to Free School Meals if you receive Working Tax Credit, except where the ‘4 week run-on’ applies as described above.

Pupils are also entitled to claim free school meals in their own right if they are in receipt of any of the above benefits.

Free School Meals – How to Apply

A request has to be made before the Council can provide free school meals. Normally, the parent or guardian of the child makes the request. Please note: you will have to pay for any school meals your child receives before DMBC receives your application.

You can apply for free school meals up to a maximum of two months before your child starts school.

Extra benefits of claiming free school meals

Even if your child does not want free school meals, you should still make a request. This is because you may be entitled to other benefits for your child, for example: free school milk for children under seven, or help towards board and lodging charges for school trips.

Was this article helpful?