Our School Meals

OUR SCHOOL MEALS

OUR SCHOOL MEALS

We benefit from the use of a dining room where all pupils can consume their lunch together, whether it is a school meal or a packed lunch. Free school meals are available to all pupils in P1 – P3.

   Our school meals are cooked on the premises in our own school canteen and children are given a choice of three hot or two cold options, which are ordered in the morning. Attractive menu and information leaflets are provided to all Aberdeenshire school pupils and parents. These can also be found by following the link below.

https://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/schools/school-info/meals/primary-school-meals

Primary Menu April 25- March 26 

As far as possible we will cater for the child with special dietary needs e.g. the diabetic child.  Arrangements can be made through the Head Teacher.

Aberdeenshire Council provides an online payment service to Primary schools that provides parents and carers with the convenience of making online payment with debit or credit cards for School meals. This is now the preferred way to pay for primary school meals, however cash and cheques will still be accepted.

To register for online payments you will be provided with a reference number by your school for each child. Parents and carers of pupils who qualify for Free School Meals are encouraged to create an account to see meal selection histories and to pay for non-food items such as school trips and activities when that option becomes available.

    The first step in accessing the online payment service is to visit Pay facility located on the Aberdeenshire Council web site home page. Alternatively you can register by following the link -

https://www.aberdeenshire.gov.uk/schools/school-info/meals/online-payments/

Parents and carers are responsible for ensuring that sufficient funds are in their children’s accounts prior to ordering a school lunch. Should a pupil not have money in their account they will still be served and you will be contacted regarding payment.

Free school meals may be available to pupils whose parents/carers circumstances meet the criteria as laid down by Aberdeenshire Council.   Information in Section 5 of this document explains the criteria and procedures for applying for free school meals.  Free meals are a confidential matter between you and the school and we do our best to try and keep this confidentiality.  

   If you wish your child to stay at school over the lunch hour, but not to eat a school meal he/she may bring a packed lunch, and facilities are available for pupils to eat their lunch in the school canteen.

   For current school meal charges please see Section 5 or check on the webpage noted above.  Meals can still be paid by visiting the school kitchen from 8:45am until 9:00am on a Monday morning or by providing your child with the money in a sealed envelope with your child’s name and class. Please make cheques payable to Aberdeenshire Council. Should a child not have money in their account, they will still receive a school dinner, and you will be contacted regarding payment.

Before lunch, the children wash their hands and proceed to the dining hall in a quiet and orderly fashion. Children select their food and sit at “family grouped” tables where we encourage the older pupils to help the younger ones and promote appropriate behaviour, manners etc.

   Children are encouraged to eat all of their lunch, but not forced. If we feel that a child is not eating enough at lunchtimes we will contact you.

   Parents should be aware that they can request a special diet for their children if there are medical or religious reasons for doing so. Children, who require Medically Prescribed or Modified Diets or need parent/carer assistance, should be identified during the admission process. Procedures are set in motion to accommodate these diets by the parent/carer completing Admission Form D available from the school administration office.

   The school aims to encourage young people to enjoy food which is both attractive to them and nutritionally sound whether this is a school meal, a packed lunch or a snack.  We would appreciate your support in achieving this aim. Where children bring a packed lunch to school, parents are responsible for ensuring that lunch box contents are stored at the correct temperature, by including an ice pack where necessary.

OUR SCHOOL TUCK SHOP

This is open from Monday to Thursday and is staffed by parent volunteers.  A range of fruit, toast, healthy snacks and juice are on sale at a cost of 15p - 30p each.  In keeping with healthy eating initiative, we allow children to purchase a maximum of two items from the tuck shop.

SNACKS

Children are encouraged to use the school tuck shop but are welcome to bring a snack from home.  As a health promoting school, we encourage healthy options and ask you to support this when providing a snack.  We would encourage you to refrain from sending cakes or treats to school to celebrate birthdays. This helps us to reinforce the healthy choices message but also avoids any problems with dietary allergies or intolerances.

  There is further information about snack and costs for Nursery pupils in their handbook.