Please see the message below from Durham County Council:
Dear Parent or Carer,
With the continual challenges we are facing in terms of inflation and energy and to ensure a sustainable and nutritious meal is provided to the children, it has been necessary to agree a price increase in relation to the primary school meal.
From Monday 27th February (following the half-term break) a school meal will cost £2.41 per day. From September 2023 meals will increase to £2.50 per day with this rate fixed until April 2024.
The meals are freshly produced on site by a catering supplier Chartwell’s and offer a 3-choice menu per day. Each meal is developed to ensure the right amount of protein, carbohydrates, fruit, and vegetables is available while avoiding confectionery and artificially sweetened drinks, with limits on the fat, salt, and sugar content in each meal.
The good news is if your child or children attend an infant school or infant class from Reception to Year 2 (KS1) then school meals will be free to them under the government Universal Infant Free School Meal Scheme.
Don’t forget that if your child has a medical dietary requirement (supported by a Medical Practitioner) then this can be provided for.
This is an unprecedented period of financial challenge across a range of industry sectors and services, the education team has worked hard with the current provider to agree a pricing mechanism to ensure a high quality and sustainable meal service is provided for children within Durham schools.
Thank you for your support.