Food & Drink

Please remember free school meals are an entitlement if you meet the criteria below, if eligible for free school meals it will also result in your child being entitled to Pupil Premium funding which would pay for things like additional in-school support, additional resources, or pay towards costs of school trips and activities. If you think you may be eligible, please apply using the link below.

Who qualifies for government free school meals?

Free school meals can only be awarded if you or your partner are claiming any of the following:

• Income support
• Job-seekers allowance - income based
• Employment and support allowance - income related
• Support under part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
• Child tax credit, provided you’re not entitled to working tax credit and have an annual income that doesn’t exceed £16,190
• Guarantee element of state pension credit

Note: children are eligible for free school meals for a four week period immediately after their parent/carer becomes unemployed, or reduces their hours to less than 16 hours a week, but is still in receipt of working tax credit.

If you think you are eligible for Free School Meals please complete the online application form

William Brookes has a cashless catering system to pay for all meals where students and parents can load money onto a card to pay for all food and drink purchased. Students entitled to Free School Meals have their daily allowance for meals added automatically by the school. By using cashless catering it also means that no student is identified as being eligible for free school meals by other students as everyone uses the same card payment system.

Parents and students have a number of ways to load money to their cards:

Online payments - parents need to either download the app or login to the payment website.

Download the app

If you have an Apple or Android supported smartphone, please download School Gateway from your app store (Apple App Store and Google Play). The app enables you to pay for school meals and also school trips PLUS you can view messages sent from school and send app messages to school for FREE.

When installing the app, please ensure you say yes to allow push notifications, otherwise you will not receive notification of any new messages.

The easiest and cheapest way to make payments is by Instant Bank Transfer. If you wish to make a payment on the app via Instant Bank Transfer you must first fill in an Instant Bank Transfer mandate on the School Gateway website (www.schoolgateway.com). You can also make payments by debit or credit cards.

OR

Visit the website

Go to www.schoolgateway.com and click on ‘New User’. You’ll receive a text message with a PIN number. Use this PIN to login to School Gateway.

We’ll notify you by text or email when new items are available for payment.

Can’t activate your account?

If you’re having trouble logging in, it may be because the school doesn’t have your current email and mobile phone number on record. Please email info@williambrookes.com to update the details on our system, remember to include your child’s name in the body of the email.

• By cash - students bring cash into school and load money onto their cards using the automated cash loaders available in school
• By cheque - cheques made payable to Catering Academy can be posted or delivered to the school catering team, cheques will be loaded onto the card before 9.00am on the day following receipt

Catering Academy is a dynamic, fresh and vibrant catering company, building a reputation for bringing innovative solutions to a wide range of catering and ancillary services for the Education, Business, Industry, and Healthcare sectors and are delighted to work in partnership at William Brookes School.

Formed in 2004 by three highly experienced Owner Directors, Louise Wymer, Kevin Cannon and Stacey Rose, the company has developed nationally to partner the various sectors within the catering industry.

Strong partnerships with our clients and customers have been developed as a result of continuous enthusiasm for improvement resulting in a passionate and innovative approach to food.

Our Ethos

"To deliver inspired service by passionate people - creating lasting partnerships" - that is "personally delivering excellence"

Our Values

• Passionate about seasonal fresh food and great service
• Team Academy’s strength comes from every individual taking personal responsibility
• Collectively recognising and celebrating success at all levels
• Delivering consistent improvements with a "can do" attitude
• Open and honest communication at all levels

We aim to exceed William Brookes School expectations by delivering a wide range of the very best fresh seasonal dishes and creating an exciting and bespoke unique catering offer. With over 140 suppliers, our commitment to locally sourced fresh produce to be delivered daily to the school is paramount.

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