The County Councils Network has published a new Dialogues report on free school meals, developed in partnership with Basis and Bremner & Co.
We are pleased to have supported this work alongside colleagues across the sector. It reflects a growing focus among councils on how to ensure that children who are entitled to free school meals are actually receiving them, and how systems can better support that aim.
The report brings together learning from implementation across a number of county and unitary authorities over the past three years. It highlights the practical steps councils are taking to identify eligible pupils more effectively, reduce administrative barriers, and ensure that funding reaches the families and schools it is intended to support.
We draw on our three years of implementation experience work with Basis, across six county and unitary councils. This work has identified more than 4,000 additional eligible pupils and unlocked over £9 million in funding for schools. It is this experience, and the clear results it has delivered, that underpins the development of this report.
This is particularly timely. With changes to free school meals eligibility coming in September 2026, councils are preparing for increased demand and looking at how to put the right processes in place ahead of time.
The experience captured in this report shows what is possible when councils, schools, and partners work together. Across the areas involved, thousands of additional pupils have been identified and registered, unlocking significant funding for schools and providing direct financial support to families.
We are grateful to the County Councils Network for convening this work, to Basis for their ongoing collaboration, and to the councils who have led the way in testing and implementing these approaches in practice.