Education, schools and adult learning

The headteacher at Castlehead High School is Gordon Menzies.

The primary schools associated with Castlehead High School are: 

• Glencoats Primary School
• Wallace Primary School 
• West Primary School.

The headteacher at Park Mains High School is Alan Dick.

The primary schools associated with Park Mains High School are:

• Bargarran Primary School
• Barsail Primary School
• Bishopton Primary School
• Dargavel Primary School
• Inchinnan Primary School
• Langbank Primary School
• Rashielea Primary School.

Plans to increase future capacity 

We are expanding and redesigning Park Mains High School to meet the expected rise in pupil numbers in the years ahead. 

Councillors agreed in 2023 to extend the school to add capacity for another 400 pupils, which will take the total capacity to 2,000 pupils. We expect this to be complete by summer 2027.

You can see our fly-through video on YouTube below, which shows how the extended school will look once complete.

The plans include:

• a new teaching building next to the existing west wing of the school
• a new PE building next to the existing PE block
• an extension to the dining area
• changes to the layout of the existing building to keep subjects together
• extra car parking and expanded bus drop-off/pick-up area.

Roll projections 

The school roll at Park Mains will increase in the years ahead, as planned new housing development in the area grows.

We have produced 15-year roll projections for all Renfrewshire schools, in partnership with data specialists, based on their tried-and-tested formula used across the UK. You can see the latest projections in the report presented to councillors in October 2025.

Read the roll-projections report for the October 2025 Education and Children's Services Policy Board.

There is a section in the report which looks in more detail at the future impact on Park Mains. You can see this at section 7.2 of the report. The projections show the future school roll of Park Mains is expected to stay within the future capacity of 2,000.

Community engagement

Throughout the project to extend and redesign the school, we have worked with the local school community to ensure their views would shape what happens next.

In late 2023, we held a series of surveys and workshops with hundreds of staff, pupils, parents and members of the local community to get their views on how an extended Park Mains might work. 

In late 2024, we ran a 12-week period of public engagement as part of the planning application for the school. This included two public events at which we presented how the designs looked at that time. You can see a copy of the display boards we presented at the event.

We also meet every 3 months with the Park Mains Parent Council Liaison Group, made up of members of the parent council from Park Mains and each of its feeder primaries, plus school staff and senior council officers. This group is a key forum to discuss current and future issues around the school.

You can read some of the updates we have issued to parents below:

• June 2026 - expansion construction update
• November 2025 - progress update
• June 2025 - progress update

Meal prices 

Our range of school and nursery lunch menus provide high-quality meals which meet national nutritional standards and are packed with quality locally sourced ingredients.

Meal prices are:

• Nursery – free (for all children with a funded early learning and childcare place)
• Primary 1 to 5 – free
• Primary 6 to 7 - £2.35
• Additional Support Needs (ASN) schools – free
• Secondary schools - £2.70. 

Price increase from August 2026 

Primary and secondary school meal prices are increasing from August 2026: 

• primary school meals are increasing by 10p to £2.45
• secondary school meals are increasing by 15p to £2.85. 

This increase follows rising costs for food and preparing meals.

How to pay for school meals 

You can pay for school meals using online cashless payment system ParentPay. 

You can ask us for help or advice with money and find out how we manage school meal debt.

Who can get free school and nursery meals 

Meals are free for: 

• children at nursery, with a funded early learning and childcare place (you do not need to apply)
• children at nursery without a funded early learning and childcare place whose parents or carers receive certain benefits (you need to apply)
• pupils in primary 1 to primary 5 (you do not need to apply)
• pupils in primary 6 and 7 whose parents or carers receive the Scottish Child Payment (you need to apply)
• secondary school pupils whose parents or carers receive certain benefits (you need to apply)
• pupils in Additional Support Needs (ASN) schools (you do not need to apply).

Find out more about free school and nursery meals, holiday meal payments, and clothing grants. 

School and nursery meal menus

See our nursery, primary school and secondary school lunch menus.

Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) is a weekly payment of £30, paid directly to young people aged 16 to 19 who continue in full-time education at school.

You'll need to apply for EMA each academic year.

You can get EMA if you're aged between 16 and 19 and are continuing your education at school.

You can apply for EMA if:

• you go to a school in the Renfrewshire area
• your household earns less than the income thresholds set by the Scottish Government, listed below
• your course is at least 21 hours of guided learning per week
• you agree and sign a valid learning agreement with your school.

A learning agreement sets out what's expected of you around attendance and coursework.

You can find out more about learning agreements in the ‘After you apply’ section below.

Household income

We look at the income of your parents or carers who live with you when awarding EMA.

To qualify for EMA, your household income must be no more than: 

• £24,421 per year before tax, if there’s 1 dependent child in full time education
• £26,884 per year before tax, if there’s more than 1 dependent child in full time education.

For EMA applications for the 2026 to 2027 school year, we'll assess your parents' or carers' household income for the previous financial year (April 2025 to April 2026).

EMA and benefits

EMAs will not affect any Tax Credit or other benefit payments your family receives from the government.

It will not affect any money you earn from a part-time job either.

Who cannot get EMA

You cannot get EMA if:

• you're under the age of 16
• you’re over the age of 19
• you have left school and are attending college – you should apply directly to the college for EMA.

If your application is approved and you’re awarded EMA, you'll get an EMA payment of £30 per week.

This will be paid every 2 weeks. Each payment covers the 2 weeks that just passed.

You'll only get paid if you meet the agreed attendance in your learning agreement.

EMA is not paid during school holidays in October, Christmas, Easter, or the summer holidays. It’s only paid when you’re at school during term time.

You’ll continue to get EMA payments if you’re on work experience during term time, but only if the work experience is a pre-arranged part of your course.

Your EMA is paid directly into your bank account. If you do not have a bank or building society account, you'll need to open one.

Your account must be able to accept BACS payments (these are payments that are paid electronically from one bank account to another). Check with your bank if you're not sure.

You can get EMA for up to 3 years. Vulnerable young people may receive support for up to 3 years within a 4-year period.

See when you can start to receive EMA during the 2026 to 2027 school year:

You can submit your EMA application early, even if you’re not entitled to receive payments until January.

If you're aged 16 or over and you have not yet applied for EMA:

• if you send your application before 30 September 2026, your payments may be backdated to the start of the school year
• if you send your application between 1 October 2026 and 28 February 2027, your payments will begin from the date we receive your application.

If you will turn 16 years old between 1 October 2026 and 28 February 2027, your payments may be backdated to the start of the January 2027 term. You must apply by 28 February 2027 to receive backdated payments.

We will not accept any applications for the 2026 to 2027 school year after 31 March 2027.

You'll only receive backdated payments to the August or January terms if you have met the conditions or your learning agreement.

Otherwise, payments will be made from the date we received your application.

Payments after summer exam period

S4 and S5 students returning for a further academic year

If you’ll remain in school for the next academic session, you’ll be eligible to receive EMA payments to the end of the academic year (usually June), if you meet the requirements of your learning agreement.

S4 and S5 students leaving school at the end of the academic year 

If you’re in S4 and S5 and do not plan to remain in school after the exam period is over, you’ll be eligible to receive an EMA until the end of the exam period.

S6 students leaving school at the end of the academic year 

If you’re in S6, you’ll be paid until the end of the exam period. 

You'll need to provide:

• your Qualifications Scotland Scottish Candidate Number (SCN)
• their contact phone number and email address
• the name of the school and your year of study
• the name, sort code, and account number of your bank or building society – this needs to be your own account and cannot belong to someone else.

Your parent or carer will need to provide: 

• their name, address and relationship to you
• their contact phone number and email address.

Your parent or carer will also need to provide evidence of household income, including one of the following:

• a P60 or a statement of earnings
• a statement of self-employment (Inland Revenue form SA302).

They must also provide proof of any benefits, Universal Credit, or pensions they receive.

They can upload files from a computer or laptop. Or they can use a camera enabled device, like a smartphone or tablet, to take photos of the documents and upload them.

If your parents or carers are self employed

If your parents or carers cannot provide the relevant documentation to confirm their income details, we’ll process your application as a provisional award. 

We’ll make weekly payments for any provisional award but only for part of the academic year. 

This award will then be put on hold until we receive the relevant finalised income details. 

If we assess your award provisionally, you must give us the final income details no later than 31 May 2027.

If you need further information on providing documentation, email us at ema.els@renfrewshire.gov.uk.

Apply for EMA online

Applications for EMA for the 2026 to 2027 school year will close on 31 March 2027.

Applications for Education Maintenance Allowance for the 2025 to 2026 school year closed on 31 March 2026.

Applications for the 2026 to 2027 school year will open in June 2026.

We'll email you with a case reference number, and we'll assess your application.

We'll contact you if we need any more information.

We'll aim to let you know our decision within 28 working days.

If you apply before school starts in August, we'll let you know by email if you have been awarded EMA.

We'll start to send award packs by post from August. The award pack will contain a learning agreement and a letter telling you what you need to do with the learning agreement.

If you apply at any other time during the school year, we'll send you an award pack by post if your application has been awarded.

You must return your learning agreement within 3 weeks of receiving your award pack.

You'll start receiving EMA payments after you’ve signed your learning agreement with your school and we’ve received the signed agreement from them.

Learning agreement

To receive EMA payments, you must have signed an EMA learning agreement. It must also be signed by your parent or carer and your school.

If you are disabled or have additional support needs (ASN), you do not need to sign the learning agreement.

A new EMA learning agreement must be completed for each academic year.

We will only pay you if you meet the conditions set out in the learning agreement.

We may stop EMA payments if the school informs us that you have failed to meet the conditions of your learning agreement.

If you have a programme of learning at more than one school, you’ll need to have a separate EMA learning agreement signed by each school you are registered at.

If your programme of learning changes and you start another course at school, the EMA learning agreement will be changed. This will need to be signed by you and the school. 

If you change school during the year, a new EMA learning agreement will need to be signed by you, the school, and your parent or carer.

We will not accept learning agreements for the 2026 to 2027 school year after 31 May 2027.

Why an EMA payment may be stopped

Your school may recommend that we stop paying an EMA. This could be based on a number of reasons, including:

Absence

We may stop payment if you do not maintain 100% attendance at school

If you’re sick or cannot attend school, you’ll need to provide evidence. 

You should collect self-certificates from the school office on the first day you return from sickness and return this to the school office within 3 school days. 

You can self-certify for up to 5 full days or 10 half days of sickness in the academic year.

After this, you’ll need to produce a medical certificate. You should send a medical certificate to your school as soon as possible.

If your medical absence extends over 3 weeks, it will be reviewed by the headteacher. The school will consider your individual circumstances.

If you’re absent for reasons other than illness – for example, for interviews, dental appointments, or hospital appointments – you should tell your school immediately.

Persistent late coming

You’ll receive a warning after 5 unexplained or unacceptable late comings to school. 

After a warning, if you have a further 2 late comings in any one week, we’ll stop payment for that week.

Conduct

We may withhold payment if you breach the school’s discipline policy – for example, if there are 2 behaviour referrals during a fortnight.

Exclusions

We will not make payments if you have been excluded from school.

Reassessment of an EMA decision

You can ask us to reassess our decision if:

• your earlier EMA application was unsuccessful
• your household income falls during the year to within the income thresholds.

You must ask us for a reassessment and provide evidence to confirm the change in circumstance and the current level of household income. 

To do this, email us at ema.els@renfrewshire.gov.uk.

We will not reassess your EMA if your household income rises during the year.

More information

If you need more information on EMA or eligibility, email us at ema.els@renfrewshire.gov.uk.

Free school meals 

You can get free school meals for your child at secondary school if you get certain benefits. 

All children at an Additional Support Needs (ASN) school get free school meals in secondary school for each school day. You'll also get meal payments during the holidays for your child if you're on certain benefits. 

School meal payments during the holidays 

You can also get payments for meals for your child during the school holidays if get certain benefits.

Your child in secondary school can get free meals in school and holiday payments if they go to a Renfrewshire school and you get: 

• Universal Credit (where your monthly earned income is not more than £995)
• Income Support
• income-based Job Seeker's Allowance
• income-based Employment and Support Allowance
• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• Pension Credit
• or are a kinship carer.

If you’re a parent or carer of a child at secondary or ASN school that has no recourse to public funds, you can apply for free school meals and holiday meal payments as they are not classified as public funds. Eligibility will be based on the same income levels as a family in receipt of Universal Credit (where your monthly earned income is not more than £995).

If you're applying for a child who has not previously attended a Renfrewshire Council school, we cannot process an application until their enrolment has been completed. This is usually during the early part of August. 

If you live in Renfrewshire and your child goes to a special school or special unit that is not within Renfrewshire, and if you meet the eligibility criteria, you can get the free school meal holiday payments.

Who cannot get it

If you do not meet the benefits criteria listed, you cannot get free school meal holiday payments. Find out where to get money and benefits advice.

You can apply for free school meals and a clothing grant at the same time. Find out about clothing grants.

You'll need to provide us with:  

• your National Insurance number 
• evidence of your household income - you can upload the proof  
• evidence of Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction - you can upload proof, or ask us to verify your housing benefit or Council Tax Reduction entitlement using our systems
• evidence of your Scottish Child Payment
• details of the child or children you're applying for - full name, gender, date of birth and the school they'll attend during the school year that you're applying for
• the bank or building society account details - holiday meal payments are paid directly into a bank account.

Applications for free school meals open on Monday 1 June 2026 and close on Monday 31 May 2027.

You only need to apply once in each school year. Apply as early as you can as we do not back date any applications. 

Apply for free school meals and clothing grants

If you're eligible for the free school meal payments, you'll also get a clothing grant. You can apply for both on the same form. Find out about clothing grants. 

You can only apply online. 

If you need help to apply: 

• contact your school
• or phone us on 0300 300 0300, Monday to Thursday from 8:45am to 4:45pm and Friday from 8:45am to 3:55pm.

Applications for free school meals open on Monday 1 June 2026.

How we make a decision 

We'll check the evidence you provide. If it meets the eligibility criteria, you'll get money added to your ParentPay account and the holiday meal payments will be paid into the bank or building society account that you gave us. 

You should speak to your school if you do not have a ParentPay account. 

How we pay it 

Holiday meal payments are made directly into your bank account 4 times in a school year, in: 

• October for the mid-term holiday
• December for the Christmas holiday
• February for the mid-term holiday
• March or April ­­for the Easter holiday
• June for the summer holiday (the 6-week summer payments are for children who have applied the previous year - so you need to have applied by the end of June to get the summer payments). 

We do not back date payments - they start from when you apply. 

You get a payment of £2.45 per weekday per child during the holidays.

What it is

These are the term dates, school holidays, and teacher in-service days for schools in Renfrewshire.

Other councils set their own dates, which could be different from ours. 

Terms and holidays

The school year starts in August and ends in June.

There are 3 terms in a school year:

• first term: August to December
• second term: January to April
• third term: April to June

There are holidays at the end of each term. Schools are also closed on public and local holidays.

Term dates 2026 to 2027

Teachers will return for the 2026 to 2027 school year on Friday 14 August 2026.

First term: August to December 2026

There are in-service days (schools are closed to pupils but open for staff to work) on Friday 14 August, Monday 17 August, and Monday 19 October 2026.

Second term: January to April 2027

There’s an in-service day (schools are closed to pupils but open for staff to work) on Wednesday 17 February 2027.

Third term: April to June 2027

There’s an in-service day (schools are closed to pupils but open for staff to work) on Thursday 6 May 2027.

Term dates 2027 to 2028

First term: August to December 2027

Teachers will return for the 2027 to 2028 school year on Monday 16 August 2027.

There are in-service days (schools are closed to pupils but open for staff to work) on Monday 16 and Tuesday 17 August, and Monday 18 October 2027.

Second term: January to April 2028

There’s an in-service day (schools are closed to pupils but open for staff to work) on Wednesday 16 February 2028.

Third term: April to June 2028

There’s an in-service day (schools are closed to pupils but open for staff to work) on Thursday 25 May 2028.

Free school meals 

All children at primary school in P1, P2, P3, P4 and P5 or in an Additional Support Needs (ASN) school get free school meals every day they're at school. You do not need to apply for this.

If you're the parent or carer of a child at primary school in P6 and P7, and you get certain benefits, you can apply to get free school meals. 

School meal payments during the holidays 

If you're the parent or carer of a child at primary or ASN school, and you're on certain benefits, you can get payments for meals during the school holidays. You need to apply once in each school year.

You do not get payments during the holidays if your child in is P6 and P7 and your only benefit is the Scottish Child Payment.

Your child can get free meals payments during the holidays and free school meal in P6 and P7 if they go to a Renfrewshire school, and you get:

• Universal Credit (where your monthly earned income is not more than £995)
• Income Support
• income-based Job Seeker's Allowance
• income-based Employment and Support Allowance
• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• Pension Credit
• or are a kinship carer.

If you’re a parent or carer of a child at primary or ASN school that has no recourse to public funds, you can apply for free school meals and holiday meal payments as they are not classified as public funds. Eligibility will be based on the same income levels as a family in receipt of Universal Credit (where your monthly earned income is not more than £995).

Your child can get free school meals at school (but not the payments in the holidays) in P6 and P7 if they go to a Renfrewshire school, and you get: 

• Scottish Child Payment.

If you're applying for a child who has not previously attended a Renfrewshire Council school, we cannot process an application until their enrolment has been completed. This is usually during the early part of August.

If you live in Renfrewshire and your child goes to a special school or special unit that is not within Renfrewshire, and if you meet the eligibility criteria, you can get the free school meal holiday payments.

Who cannot get it

If you do not meet the benefits criteria listed, you cannot get free school meal holiday payments. Find out where to get money and benefits advice.

You can apply for free school meals and a clothing grant at the same time. Find out about clothing grants.

You'll need to provide us with:  

• your National Insurance number 
• evidence of your household income - you can upload the proof  
• evidence of Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction - you can upload proof, or ask us to verify your housing benefit or Council Tax Reduction entitlement using our systems
• evidence of your Scottish Child Payment
• details of the child or children you're applying for - full name, gender, date of birth and the school they'll attend during the school year that you're applying for
• the bank or building society account details - holiday meal payments are paid directly into a bank account.

Applications for free school meals open on Monday 1 June 2026 and close on Monday 31 May 2027.

You only need to apply once in each school year. Apply as early as you can as we do not back date any applications. 

Apply for free school meals and clothing grants

If you're eligible for the free school meal payments, you'll also get a clothing grant. You can apply for both on the same form. Find out about clothing grants. 

You can only apply online. 

If you need help to apply: 

• contact your school
• or phone us on 0300 300 0300, Monday to Thursday from 8:45am to 4:45pm and Friday from 8:45am to 3:55pm.

Applications for free school meals open on Monday 1 June 2026.

How we make a decision 

We'll check the evidence you provide. If it meets the eligibility criteria, you'll get money added to your ParentPay account and the holiday meal payments will be paid into the bank or building society account that you gave us. 

You should speak to your school if you do not have a ParentPay account. 

How we pay it 

Holiday meal payments are made directly into your bank account 4 times in a school year, in: 

• October for the mid-term holiday
• December for the Christmas holiday
• February for the mid-term holiday
• March or April ­­for the Easter holiday
• June for the summer holiday (the 6-week summer payments are for children who have applied the previous year - so you need to have applied by the end of June to get the summer payments). 

We do not back date payments - they start from when you apply. 

You get a payment of £2.45 per weekday per child during the holidays.

What this is

We have a duty to provide early learning and childcare services for children as required in the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 and the Standards in Scotland's Schools etc. Act 2000.

This notice, along with our privacy policy, explains how we process personal information for the purposes of determining early learning and childcare admissions and the provision of early learning and childcare across Renfrewshire.

Why we need your personal information

To deliver early learning and childcare across Renfrewshire, we need to collect, store, use, share and dispose of personal information. This is known as data processing.

Processing personal information when determining early learning and childcare admissions and the provision of early learning and childcare allows us to provide those services and fulfil our legal responsibilities, such as:

• allocating early learning and childcare placements in an equitable way
• ensuring those families in greatest need of early learning and childcare obtain a service appropriate to their needs
• providing advice and support
• providing early learning and childcare services
• supporting children with disabilities
• providing child protection services.

On occasions, we may keep your personal information within our archives for evidential and historical reasons or use it for research and statistical purposes. It will sometimes be necessary to process personal information to protect individuals from harm or injury, to prevent and detect crime, to comply with legal orders, and to provide information in accordance with a person's rights. We will only process your personal information when it is lawful to do so.

As part of the admission and application process for early learning and childcare, we collect personal and special category data in a variety of forms:

1. Application form for a place in an early learning and childcare setting

Personal and special category data is collected and processed by us and we use the personal data to assess and determine, in line with our guidelines, the child's eligibility for, and whether the child is eligible for a priority place in, an early learning and childcare setting in Renfrewshire.

2. Request for assistance in an early learning and childcare setting

Personal and special category data is shared with us in this form by a professional agency e.g., social work, health or in the voluntary sector, and we use this personal data to identify those individuals that will require further substantial support and assistance when we are determining the allocations for early learning and childcare in Renfrewshire.

3. Early learning and childcare enrolment form

Personal and special category data is collected and processed by the setting where the early learning childcare place is offered, and we use the personal data to create and maintain a personal file of the child, including for example whether the child has any dietary requirements while in an early learning and childcare setting in Renfrewshire.

4. Deferred entry to primary school: Application for an additional year of free early learning and childcare

Personal and special category data is collected and processed by us to assess and determine, in accordance with the child's best educational interests and our guidelines, requests for a child to continue with an additional year of early learning and childcare prior to be enrolled in primary school.

5. Application to purchase wraparound care

Personal (and potentially some special category) data is collected and processed by us for us to assess and determine, in accordance with our guidelines, applications for wraparound care, and the terms of any wraparound care to be delivered by the setting.

6. Agreement to purchase wraparound care

Personal (and potentially some special category) data is collected and processed by us for maintain a record of terms of the agreement to purchase wraparound care and a record of the relevant personal details and to allow the setting to deliver the wraparound care.

7. Emergency/temporary early learning and childcare placement contract

Personal (and potentially some special category) data is collected and processed by us for maintain a record of terms and the review date of the emergency or temporary early learning and childcare placement.

In processing personal information, we must comply with the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018. We refer to this as data protection legislation.

How we collect and process your data

More generally, the personal information we hold in our provision of early learning and childcare admissions is collected in a variety of ways. We will collect information from you in paper and online forms (as outlined above), by telephone, email, CCTV and in conversation with a member of our staff. We will also collect information from one or more of our partners agencies such as NHS, Police Scotland and voluntary sector organisations working with the us. When we collect and process your personal information, we are committed to the principles set out in data protection legislation.

Data protection principles

• we only collect information that we need
• we keep your personal information secure
• we don't keep your information for longer than we need to
• we tell you why we need your information and what we will do with it
• we collect accurate information and, where necessary, keep it up to date
• we don't use your information for a different reason than the one we have told you about. The exception to this is if we must do so by law, e.g., for the purposes of providing child protection and safeguarding services

Personal data categories

We process personal data and special category data as part of determining early learning and childcare admissions and the provision of early learning and childcare. Personal data is information which can be used to identify you, such as your:

• name
• address
• date of birth
• a unique identifier, such as a Social Work Client ID number.

Special category data is information that reveals:

• racial or ethnic origin
• data concerning health and sex life
• religious or philosophical beliefs.

Why we process your data

We process data when determining early learning and childcare admissions and the provision of early learning and childcare because:

• it is required by law
• it is necessary for the performance of a task carried out in the public interest
• it is necessary as part of a contract
• it is necessary to protect someone's life.

If we require your permission to process your personal information, we will ask you.

Some children get free meals at nursery.

They may also get a daily portion of milk and a healthy snack if they attend nursery or childcare for more than 2 hours a day. Speak to your nursery about the specific meals, snacks or milk they provide.

If your child is eligible for funded early learning and childcare they can get a free meal on the days they go to a Renfrewshire Council early learning and childcare nursery and in approved funded provider settings.

If your child attends a Renfrewshire Council nursery and is not eligible for a funded early learning and childcare place, you can get a free school meals if you get:

• Universal Credit (where your monthly earned income is not more than £995)
• Income Support
• income-based Job Seeker's Allowance
• income-based Employment and Support Allowance
• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• Pension Credit
• or are a kinship carer.

If you’re a parent or carer of a child at nursery or in childcare that has no recourse to public funds, you can apply for free meals as they are not classified as public funds. Eligibility will be based on the same income levels as a family in receipt of Universal Credit (where your monthly earned income is not more than £995).

You do not need to apply if your child is eligible for funded early learning and childcare, they will get a meal automatically.

You need to apply if your child does not get a funded place and you meet the eligibility criteria.

Apply for free school meals 

Applications open on Monday 1 June 2026.

Scottish Child Payment, a four-weekly payment to help with costs for children under 16.

School Age Payment, a one off payment for when children normally start school.

A clothing grant is money given to you so that you can buy school uniforms for your child.

Depending on when you apply in the school year, you can get a payment in the summer for the start of the school year and another payment in the winter.

Your child can get a clothing grant if they go to a Renfrewshire school, and you get:

• Housing Benefit
• or Council Tax Reduction.

Your child can get a clothing grant and free meals in school and meal payments during the holidays, if they go to a Renfrewshire school and you get:

• Universal Credit (where your monthly earned income is not more than £995)
• Income Support
• income-based Job Seeker's Allowance
• income-based Employment and Support Allowance
• support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• Pension Credit
• or are a kinship carer.

If you’re a parent or carer of a child at primary, secondary or an Additional Support Needs (ASN) school that has no recourse to public funds, you can apply for a Clothing Grant as it is not classified as public funds. Eligibility will be based on the same income levels as a family in receipt of Universal Credit (where your monthly earned income is not more than £995).

If you're applying for a child who has not previously attended a Renfrewshire Council nursery or school, we'll be unable to process an application until their enrolment has been completed. This is usually during the early part of August.

If you live in Renfrewshire and your child goes to a special school or special unit that is not within Renfrewshire, and if you meet the eligibility criteria, you'll get the grant.

Who cannot get a clothing grant

Children at nursery are not entitled to a clothing grant.

If you do not meet the benefits criteria listed, you cannot get a clothing grant.

Find out where to get help with money and benefits.

You can apply for a clothing grant and free school meals at the same time.

You'll need to tell us:  

• your National Insurance number
• evidence of your household income - you can upload the proof to this form.
• evidence of Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction - you can upload proof, or ask us to verify your Housing Benefit or Council Tax Reduction entitlement using our systems
• details of the child or children you're applying for - full name, gender, date of birth and the school they'll attend during the school year that you're applying for
• your bank or building society account details - clothing grants are paid directly into a bank account.

Applications for clothing grants open on Monday 1 June 2026 and close on Wednesday 31 March 2027.

Apply for a clothing grant and free school meals 

If you're also eligible for the free school meal payments, we'll tell you after you apply. You can apply for both on the same form. Find out about:

• free school meals and holiday payments for primary pupils
• free school meals and holiday payments for secondary pupils.

You can only apply online.

If you need help to apply:

• contact your school
• or phone us on 0300 300 0300, Monday to Thursday from 8:45am to 4:45pm and Friday from 8:45am to 3:55pm.

Applications for clothing grants open on Monday 1 June 2026 and close on Wednesday 31 March 2027.

It usually takes 3 weeks to process a successful application.

For children who are 16 and could leave school after June - after your application, we may need to verify they have returned to school after the school year begins.

How we make a decision 

We'll check the evidence you provide. If it meets the eligibility criteria, you'll get the clothing grant payments.

How we pay it

The amount of clothing grant for each eligible pupil is:

• £120 for primary aged children, and a winter payment of £50
• £150 for secondary aged children, and a winter payment of £50.

Make sure to apply as early as you can so that you also get a payment in October for the winter. We do not back date claims.

Scottish Child Payment, a four-weekly payment to help with costs for children under 16.

School Age Payment, a one off payment for when children normally start school.