Catering Written by Bethany Eadie, content producer at The Key
Providing free school meals during lockdown
Using the national voucher system The government has launched its voucher scheme for schools providing free school meals. The scheme is run using the Edenred portal. You should’ve received an activation email from Edenred through the email address the DfE holds for your school. Once you’ve activated your account, you’ll be able to create vouchers using the step-by-step guide. For each eligible child, you’ll be able to order either a single £15 voucher each week or a weekly £15 rolling voucher. You can also combine funding where a family has more than one child eligible. Schools are expected to provide eligible pupils with free school Once you’ve confirmed the voucher’s meals when they’re self-isolating or during school closure. value, you have two options. You can either Bethany Eadie from The Key, outlines the options available to send an ‘eCode’ directly to parents, they can then choose an eGift card from a range schools and how to support the most vulnerable families of supermarkets). Or you can select an eGift card on the parents’ behalf, and print The Department for Education (DfE) Using your existing catering and post the card to them – you’ll need to recommends three options to make sure service and create a ‘take-away’ check which supermarket they use. you can provide lunch to eligible children. or delivery service E-Gift cards are These are; contact your existing catering If it’s safe and practical to do so, available for the following M ak service and find out if they can prepare your school kitchen could stay supermarkets: Aldi; sure yo e meals, give out supermarket vouchers open and prepare lunches in McColl’s; Morrisons; u t e ll families (using the national scheme) or use local paper bags as you normally Tesco; Sainsbury’s; out for to watch initiatives like community hubs or charities. would for FSM-eligible Asda; Waitrose; We’ll explore each of these options below. pupils going on school and M&S. example scams. For , Funding will be available to compensate trips. Parents can collect Families are e m a il parents s for costs not covered by the national these from school, or you free to select the for ban asking kd voucher scheme, such as costs arising can create a collection most appropriate because they qu etails food and drink for from providing meals before the national point just outside school alify for Free voucher scheme was introduced. Or costs or in your playground. their child, but when S c h o o from where you’re providing meals to pupils Stagger collection times selecting products, are l Meals for whom the national voucher scheme throughout the day (e.g. year encouraged to consider is inappropriate, such as if there are no 1: 9-10am, year 2: 10-11am, health and nutrition. The participating supermarkets locally or if etc.). Alternatively, if it’s possible, School Food Standards may act you’re providing meals directly to pupils. you could organise a delivery service. as a useful guide. E Issue 25.3 | EDUCATION BUSINESS MAGAZINE
25
