Free school meals — guidance for schools change log
Free school meals — guidance for schools: what changed on 16 September 2026
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What changed: The guidance includes a one-off extension for completing free school meals eligibility checks for the autumn 2026 school census. It also adds a link regarding funding for school-based nurseries and maintained nursery schools.
Who is affected: School leaders, school staff, and governing bodies in local-authority-maintained schools, academies, free schools, and non-maintained special schools, as well as local authorities.
GOV.UK change note: Updated the guidance document to add information about the one-off extension until 2 November 2026 for completing free school meals eligibility checks for the autumn 2026 school census. Added a link to the funding arrangements for school-based nurseries and maintained nursery schools.
Read the official GOV.UK document. Check the current guidance before acting.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
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