School Meals Scheme

The School Meals Scheme funds schools to provide food to school children.

From 2025, all DEIS and non-DEIS primary schools are eligible for hot meals. See the list of schools approved for hot school meals.

Post-primary schools are not eligible to apply for hot meals, but they can get other food options under the scheme.

Schools supplying school meals need to apply each year for funding.

It was announced in Budget 2025 that a new ‘school meals holiday hunger’ pilot project will be introduced in summer 2025.

Schools and local authorities must make sure that the food they supply to children meets certain nutrition standards. Safefood and the HSE helped develop these standards.

Schools can provide:

• Breakfast (such as milk, cereal, toast, fruit, yoghurt)
• Lunch or after-school meals (such as bread, rolls, meat, poultry, fish, vegetables)
• Dinner (such as potatoes, chicken curry, spaghetti bolognaise)
• Snacks (such as bananas, pears, apples)
• Drinks (such as plain water, milk or unsweetened fruit)

You can read the Nutrition Standards for School Meals (pdf), which sets out how each meal should be served by schools.

What if my child has an allergy?

You should tell your school if your child has any allergies they need to be aware of.

Suppliers should provide schools with menus that are suitable for children with food allergies or intolerances, which should include lactose-free, gluten-free and vegetarian options. Suppliers should also provide schools with allergens lists.

How schools use funding to provide food under the School Meals Scheme depends on the type of school and the type of scheme the school is eligible for.

There are 2 schemes within the School Meals Scheme:

• The Urban Scheme
• The Local Projects Scheme

Funding is allocated to schools based on a rate per meal, per child, per day.

The Urban Scheme

The Urban Scheme supports school meals for primary schools in urban areas. Local authorities are generally responsible for procuring food suppliers for schools on this scheme.

The Local Projects Scheme

The Local Projects Scheme gives funding directly to schools and groups that operate their own school meals projects.

How do schools decide which food supplier to use?

Meals are provided at a standard rate. There are many suppliers, so schools will decide which supplier to use based on:

• Food quality and menu options available
• The facilities in schools (for example, storage facilities for food)

Schools can get help from the School Procurement Unit when searching for a supplier.

You do not need to apply for the School Meals Scheme. If your child’s school is part of the scheme, your child can get meals from the school.

Can my child opt out of the Scheme?

You can opt out of the School Meals Scheme at any time. You should tell your child’s school if you do not want your child to receive meals as part of the scheme.

You can read more about the School Meals Scheme, and find answers to frequently asked questions, on gov.ie.