School Dinners

Our school catering service is provided by Taylor Shaw, the school caterer of choice for thousands of primary pupils across the UK. They have provied the information below to help parents get the most from school catering options.

Our school menu is appetising, nutritious, balanced, and designed to encourage children to enjoy food, learn, play, and grow. Lunch is an integral part of the school day and something all children should look forward to. Taylor Shaw’s dedicated catering team ensures the dining hall is a welcoming and happy place for your child.

Our menus meet the Government’s School food standards and the bronze Food for Life standards.

89% of meals are freshly prepared daily
No undesirable additives or artificial trans fats are used
Our menus provide for all dietary and cultural needs
Our suppliers provide appropriate food safety standards
Our catering team is supported with skills training in fresh produce

Taylor Shaw’s dietitians ensure our menus are nutritionally sound, shaping recipes to ensure they meet the School Food Standards and standards set by Public Health England for salt and free sugar.

Our Menu

Our menu includes a wide variety of options to suit all tastes based on feedback from pupils, staff, the catering team, and parents and guardians. We run a three-week menu cycle that changes twice a year.

Managing Allergies & Other Medical Diets

Taylor Shaw’s dietitians and catering team work together and follow a robust process, so you can feel reassured that whenever safely possible, an alternative menu will be provided. All their staff receive allergy training annually, and whenever there’s an update to allergen laws.

The Allergy Menus - A Guide for Parents contains further information about the medical diet process and includes the medical diet request form.

CLICK HERE for instructions to request a medical diet

Please print off this form, complete it and return to school. If you don’t have access to a printer please contact the school.

About Our Food

Our menu is sourced responsibly and uses:

Red Tractor-certified meat
Marine Stewardship Council fish (MSC)
Free-range eggs
Local suppliers for bread, fruit & vegetables, and dairy products to reduce food miles
Seasonal produce

Eat & Learn

We encourage pupils to learn about food through our food education program which includes fun-themed events, assemblies, and displays with messaging around health and wellbeing.

Eating a School Lunch is Better for Your Child

Did you know only 1% of packed lunches meet the nutritional standards that currently apply to school food. 5 reasons school lunches are better:

Save time & money
Nutritionally better than a packed lunch
Promotes a varied diet & encourages new tastes
Inclusivity, dining with friends
Help academic attainment by being linked to improved concentration

CLICK HERE to view Parents' Information Leaflet

Free School Meals

Reception Class, Year 1 or Year 2

Your child will be able to get universal free school meals if they’re in a government-funded school and in reception class, year 1 or year 2.

Year 3 & above

Your child may be able to get free school meals if you get any of the following:

Income Support
income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
income-related Employment and Support Allowance
support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
the guaranteed element of Pension Credit
Child Tax Credit (provided you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190)
Working Tax Credit run-on - paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
Universal Credit - if you apply on or after 1 April 2018 your household income must be less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including any benefits you get)

Children who get paid these benefits directly, instead of through a parent or guardian, can also get free school meals. Your child may also get free school meals if you get any of these benefits and your child is both. Find out how to apply on your local authority’s website.

Taylor Shaw’s Website Address:

https://taylorshaw.com/