Free school meals and clothing grants

Apply online for free school meals and clothing grants

Free school meals and clothing grants

You may be able to apply for free school meals and a clothing grant if you are a parent or guardian of a child and are in receipt of particular benefits.

On this page:

What is included in free school meals

This gives your child one free meal on every day that they are at school.

All children in primary class 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 (P1, 2, 3, 4 and 5) and children at Additional Support Needs (ASN) schools get a universal school meal free of charge every day at school.

If your child, or the child you care for, is in Primary 6 or above, you can apply online for free school meals.

You can apply for free school meals at any time in the school year.

Free school meal applications received now are only paid from the date the application is processed. The payment is not backdated.

Free school meal payments during the holidays

If your child is in P1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 and you are on specific benefits mentioned, you need to apply to get a payment during the four main school holidays.

If your child is in P6, P7 or secondary school and they get free school meals, you will get the payment automatically.

If your child gets a school meal because they are in primary 1, 2, 3, 4 or 5 or at an Additional Support Needs (ASN) school, you will only get the payment if:

they are entitled to a free school meal on the basis of low income (family on certain benefits)
you have applied for free school meals for this school year (August 2023 to June 2024).

What a clothing grant is

A clothing grant is a payment to help you buy school uniforms. If you qualify, we'll give you one grant for each child during any school year. Unfortunately, you cannot apply for a clothing grant for nursery children.

The clothing grant is £120 per eligible primary school pupil and £150 per eligible secondary school pupil.

You'll also get an extra winter payment of £50 for each child receiving school clothing grant to help buy winter clothing. This payment will be paid again this winter (2023).

Who can apply for clothing grants and free school meals

You can apply for free school meals and or clothing grants if:

your child, or the child you care for, goes to a Renfrewshire primary, secondary or special school
you receive specific benefits, see the table below.

What benefits apply
Benefit Received	Free School Meals	Clothing Grant	Proof Required Dated within the past six months
Income Support	Yes	Yes	DWP award letter or current Tax Credit Award Notice (TC602) which shows entitlement to this benefit. All pages required
Jobseekers Allowance (Income Based)	Yes	Yes	DWP award letter or current Tax Credit Award Notice (TC602) which shows entitlement to this benefit. All pages required
Employment & Support Allowance (Income Related)	Yes	Yes	DWP award letter or current Tax Credit Award Notice (TC602) which shows entitlement to this benefit. All pages required
Child Tax Credit with a gross annual income below £18,725 with no element of Working Tax Credit	Yes	Yes	Current Tax Credit Award Notice (TC602). All pages required
Maximum Child Tax Credit and maximum Working Tax Credit with annual income of up to £8,717	Yes	Yes	Current Tax Credit Award Notice (TC602). All pages required
Support Under part V1 of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999	Yes	Yes	Confirmation Letter/Home Office
Universal Credit with a monthly earned income of not more than £726	Yes	Yes	Universal Credit awards notice
Housing Benefit	No	Yes	Current Letter to show receipt of Housing Benefit
Council Tax reduction	No	Yes	Current Letter to show receipt of Council Tax reduction
Child Tax Credit, but not Working Tax Credit, with an annual income of less than £18,725	No	Yes	Current Tax Credit Award Notice (TC602). All pages required
Both Working Tax Credit and Child Tax Credit with an annual income of less than £18,725	No	Yes	Current Tax Credit Award Notice (TC602). All pages required

What evidence you need to provide

Have a look at the table above for details of the proof you need to give us to support your application.

All Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) and Housing Benefit/Council Tax award letters must be dated within the past six months.

If you need a copy of your award letter, you can contact the relevant government department:

Income support, Job Seekers Allowance or Employment Support Allowance, contact the Department of Work and Pensions on 0845 608 8598.
Tax Credits, contact HM Revenue & Customs on 0345 300 3900.

Apply for a clothing grant or free school meals

You can apply online for a clothing grant and free school meals.

You must attach the proof of benefits you currently receive and include the supporting evidence asked for on the form.

How you will be paid your clothing grant

Clothing grant payments are made by faster payment direct to your bank account.

If you don't have a bank account yourself, you can use a trusted account (e.g. a relative) as this will ensure payment is received quickly. It also allows you to receive ongoing payments for Free School Meals while schools are operating with coronavirus restrictions.

If your child is 16 (before 30 September) and could leave school after June, you can still apply for a clothing grant and free school meals for them.

If you are applying for a child who has never attended a Renfrewshire Council nursery or school before, we must wait until that child is enrolled before processing your application.

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Renfrewshire Council