Your child's health and safety will always be of the utmost importance to us, and having accurate information about dietary needs and allergies is crucial for us to prepare and serve meals that meet their requirements.
 
Taylor Shaw’s dietitians and catering team work together and follow a robust process, so you can feel reassured that whenever safely possible, an alternative menu will be provided. All the teams receive allergy training annually, and whenever there’s an update to allergen laws.
 
If your child requires a medical diet due to a diagnosed food allergy, diagnosed food intolerance or a medical condition requiring an adapted menu (e.g. carbohydrate count for Type 1 Diabetes), please follow this link (https://orders.lunchhound.co.uk/medicaldiets/request) to request a medical diet. For further support, please refer to the following document: ‘Medical Diet Menus – A Guide for Parents, Guardians & Carers’.
 
All medical diet requests must be supported with medical evidence. This must be in the form of a letter which clearly outlines your child’s food allergies/ intolerances, and must be from a medical Doctor, Dietitian or Specialist Nurse.
 
Kindly note, you DO NOT need to make a request for dietary preferences, or for the following diets: vegan, pescatarian, vegetarian or halal, as these requirements can be met through our standard menu.

Medical Diet Menus Guide

Our menu is sourced responsibly and uses:

• Red Tractor-certified meat
• Marine Stewardship Council fish (MSC)
• Free-range eggs
• Local suppliers for bread, fruit & vegetables, and dairy products to reduce food miles
• Seasonal produce

We encourage pupils to learn about food through our food education program which includes fun-themed events, assemblies, and displays with messaging around health and wellbeing.

Did you know only 1% of packed lunches meet the nutritional standards that currently apply to school food? Here are five reasons school lunches are better:

• They can save time & money
• They’re nutritionally better than a packed lunch
• They promote a varied diet & encourage new tastes
• They support inclusivity, dining with friends
• They help academic attainment by being linked to improved concentration

Information Leaflet for Parents and Guardians

Reception Class, Year 1 or Year 2

Your child will be able to receive universal free school meals if they’re in a government-funded school and in reception class, year 1 or year 2.

Year 3 & above

Your child may be able to get free school meals if you receive any of the following:

• Income Support
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• The guaranteed element of Pension Credit
• Child Tax Credit (provided you’re not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190)
• Working Tax Credit run-on - paid for 4 weeks after you stop qualifying for Working Tax Credit
• Universal Credit - if you apply on or after 1 April 2018 your household income must be less than £7,400 a year (after tax and not including any benefits you get)

Children who get paid these benefits directly, instead of through a parent or guardian, can also get free school meals.

If your individual circumstances entitle you to Free School Meals, we would ask that you please apply using the following link:

https://www.portsmouth.gov.uk/services/schools-learning-and-childcare/schools/school-meals/ 

For more information on Taylor Shaw’s please visit:

https://taylorshaw.com/