Winnall Primary School
Lunches at School
Children learn best when they are well nourished. At Winnall we aim to support our children's wellbeing by providing nutritious hot cooked meals every lunchtime.
School lunches are freshly prepared every day, on site by our kitchen staff from our catering partner HC3S. They cater for many different tastes, serving a mix of British classics and foods from around the world.
Lunch menu's change twice a year (roughly April and November) and operate on a three weekly cycle. Every day there is both a vegetarian option and a meat option. Please take a look at these menu's with your child (particularly those in KS1) to help them make their lunch choices.
Children select their cooked lunch each day at morning registration and are given wristbands which they then exchange at the kitchen in the hall for their meal:
- A green wristband is for vegetarian meals
- A red wristband is issued for the meat option
- And, we also have an orange wristband for children with allergies and special menus.
Is my child eligible for a Free School Meal?
Under the current government scheme, ALL children in Year R, 1 and 2 are entitled to Universal Free School Meals. Some families in receipt of benefits may be entitled to receive Free School Meals for children in Years 3, 4, 5 and 6.
Step One: Check your child's eligibility for Free School Meals at Government.uk
Step Two: Apply on the Hampshire Free School Meals Application portal.
How do I pay for my child's school lunch?
If your child is not entitled to a free school meal the cost is £2.60 per day or £13.00 per week payable in advance. We encourage parents or carers to pay online via the ScoPay app. This can be downloaded to your phone from Google Play or Apple Store (depending which type of phone you have) and is very simple to use. Please request your unique code from the school office in order to pay via the app. If you are unable to use the app we can accept cash in the school office.
Winnall Primary School has a NO DEBT policy relating to school meals. This is because the school has to cover the cost of unpaid dinner debts from its education budget and this means that ALL the children are unfairly impacted as a result. No parent would take their child to a restaurant and expect them to be given food without paying; the same applies at Winnall Primary School.
Is there a special menu for children with food allergies?
Winnall is a NUT FREE school and we do have children with severe nut allergies. We therefore ask all children not to bring nut products onto school premises. This includes peanut butter and all Nutella products. Please do not hesitate to contact the school office if you have any further questions.
HC3S can provide dairy, soya, wheat, gluten and egg free meals. If your child has an allergy this must be registered and medical evidence provided. You can do this online by visiting the HC3S Special Diets Portal.
Can my child have a packed lunch from home?
Some children prefer to bring in a packed lunch from home. This must arrive in a named lunch box and be totally NUT FREE. It is important that children have a healthy and nutritious lunch. Change4Life has some useful ideas on healthy options to include in your child's lunchbox.
HC3S, Your Award-Winning School Caterer
With over 30 years of successful school catering experience, our ethos is to provide healthy, local, responsible sourced food that children love. Our tasty, freshly cooked, nutritious dishes help your children flourish and reach their potential. As part of a balanced diet, our lunches provide a third of a child’s daily calorie intake, to aid concentration levels and give them energy to focus and to play.
We know that providing award-winning meals isn’t enough and so at HC3S we go that step further, by helping schools and the wider community to encourage children, parents and carers to live healthy lifestyles and think sustainably.
That’s why our ‘Ready Steady Cook’ and Cook, Eat, Educate programmes are fun, engaging and available in your area. We also offer healthy eating sessions at school in collaboration with Public Health England. Our added value ‘Food to Flourish Classroom’ resources help teachers educate your children in an innovative, food related fashion that cuts across the curriculum.
Where opportunity arises, and in a Covid-safe environment, we bring live cooking and food related workshops to the classrooms. Sometimes, through partnerships with our suppliers and other local food organisations, this maybe outside of the classroom, creating sensory-filled memorable experiences.
Celebrate with us throughout the academic year as we support, VegPower’s Eat Them To Defeat Them campaign encouraging children to eat more vegetables, Nutrition and Hydration Week and National School Meals Week; key events in the food and drink calendar which are lots of fun.
Want to know more about HC3S?
Click on this web link www.hants.gov.uk/hc3s Follow and review us on Facebook Follow and tweet us on Twitter
Does your child need a medical special diet to eat lunch at school? If so, you need to create an account to register your child for a medical special diet.
Once you have created your account, we will be able to review your medical evidence with our NHS dietician in order to devise an adapted menu for your child's school lunch.
Living with allergies comes with its own set of rules so when it comes to food, as education caterers, we want to make this as easy as possible for you as a family. Our staff are trained in food safety and regularly update their skills on allergens. We never underestimate the dangers of food allergies and intolerances and that's why we work hard to get it right. More details can be found Special diets | Hampshire County Council (hants.gov.uk)