School Meals

At Gainford Church of England Primary and Pre-School, we promote and encourage healthy eating.  During your child’s time here, they will have many opportunities to try a wide variety of foods and textures.  We also like to include the children in the preparation and the choice of their snack.

School Meals

North Eats (Chartwells), Durham County Council’s approved catering contractor, provides our school meals. This means that pupils who opt to stay for school lunch, have a variety of healthy, nutritionally balanced foods. Children are provided with a school meal with either a hot or cold dessert. All pupils are offered chilled drinking water as part of their lunch.

Reception, Year 1 and Y2 children all qualify for a free school meal as part of Government funding. This is known as Universal Free School Meals.  We would strongly encourage all of our Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 children to have a free school meal, particularly when there is such a wide choice of hot and cold meals including sandwiches.

 

  • The cost of a school meal for Year 3 – Year 6 pupils is £2.81.
  • The cost of a school meal for Pre-School children will be £3.36 (inc VAT). 

Since the introduction of the electronic ordering system internally at school, children will select their choice of meal on the day, this allows the kitchen to prepare accurate numbers of meals and reduce wastage. If you are providing a packed lunch, the child will select this option on the screen. Payment for meals is still via Parentpay and you should top up regularly to keep your account in credit.

 

The new Winter Menu comes in to effect on 4th November 2024.

Chartwells Autumn - Winter Menu 2024

Packed Lunches

Children may bring a healthy packed lunch.  To ensure consistency and to keep packed lunches in line with food standards for school meals, packed lunches should not contain the following:

  • Fizzy / sugary drinks in cartons, bottles or cans
  • Chocolate-coated products / sweets / confectionary
  • Cereal bars, fruit bars
  • Chocolate spread as a filling for sandwiches
  • Chewing gum
  • Sugared / toffee and salted popcorn

We are a Nut Free school – please ensure packed lunches do not contain nuts.