Food at Graffham and Duncton
At Graffham and Duncton schools we are passionate about food. We think it is really important the children develop a health relationship with good nutritious food and we also think that this can and should be integrated into the local community with sustainable locally sourced ingredients and freshly made nutritious meals. We want mealtimes at school to be full of joy, learning and community spirit.
Food in the curriculum – we regularly use a wide range of food to support teaching and learning, for example, cooking, trying foods from around the world, using food as part of an art project, tasting foods, experimenting with food (e.g. in science and design & technology). If your child is a vegetarian, has a food allergy, has religious reasons or any other reasons for avoiding certain foods or food products, please let us know.
Snacks and Water
Snacks
Graffham CE Infant School – we participate in a Government funded Fruit and Vegetable scheme. Each morning break children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are offered a piece of fruit or vegetable such as a carrot, banana or pear. Parents are not charged for this.
Duncton CE Junior School – Children may bring a healthy mid-morning snack (fruit, vegetables or other healthy food). Please do not send your child/children to school with sweets, chocolate, gum or fizzy/energy drinks. Please also remember that we are a ‘no nut’ school.
Water
Please ensure your child brings a named water bottle to school every day which is kept in the classroom so children can have a drink at any time. The bottle should be easy to re-fill and hold a minimum of 300ml.
New School Lunches from September 2026
We are delighted to share some very exciting news about lunchtime at our school – from September 2026 we will be cooking all of our own hot lunches on site from scratch using fresh locally sourced ingredients.
Behind the scenes, our school leadership team and governors have been working passionately on an exciting new project to improve our school lunches. We know just how important fresh, nutritious food is for children as they grow, and we want every child in our school to experience food at its very best.
We are delighted to share that we are working in partnership with Chefs in Schools, a charity dedicated to transforming school food through fresh, scratch‑cooked meals, real ingredients, and trained professional chefs. Their values really align with ours and we can’t wait to start working together.
Current Hot Lunch Provision
We currently have hot lunch food supplied by Chartwells, through the current WSCC contract.
Note from Chartwells: To continue delivering a high quality service that meets the School Food Standards, we have increased the meal price at your child’s school to £3.20 from 1st September 2025. Our menu will continue to provide children a choice of nutritious meals, while catering for those with allergies.
How to order: Log on at www.parentpay.com to choose and book your meals. Orders need to be placed by midnight Thursday, ten days ahead of the week required.
The menu and other Chartwells West Sussex information can be found here: West Sussex | Chartwells the link takes you directly to the West Sussex page, just scroll down for all the information.
For children with food intolerances and allergies, Chartwells have a dedicated team of medical diet nutritionists on hand to support allergen aware children and their parents. More information on their medical diet process can be found here: The Chartwells Approach to Medical Diets | Chartwells
Parents and guardians can contact the medical diet nutrition team directly on: westsussexspecialdiets@compass-group.co.uk.
To find out more about Chartwells, visit their website or contact the school catering team. Weblink: Primary School Caterers You Can Trust | Chartwells
Free School Meals
Universal free school meals are available to all children in reception, year 1 and year 2. For children in Year 3 and above, means tested, free school meals are available for eligible pupils (see below). Meals can be purchased for children in year 3 and above who are not eligible for free meals. Children who have hot meals can still sit with friends who have packed lunches.
Eligibility For Free School Meals
If you are in receipt of benefits you can apply for free school meals and your child’s school will receive a Pupil Premium grant to support your child’s education. The grant is currently £1300 per eligible primary pupil. This applies even if your child is currently receiving a Universal Free School Meal in Reception or Key Stage One.
From 1st January 2024 there is a new process for parents to submit their applications for Free School Meals. The process will now be entirely online.
Important Update – New Universal Credit criteria
From September 2026, all households receiving Universal Credit, not just those under the £7,400 income cap, will be entitled to free school meals. This change is expected to save some families up to £495 per child per year in school meal costs. Although eligibility has been broadened, parents will still need to apply to ensure the school can process and receive the additional funding.
A guide to the application process for parents can be found here Free school meal applicaton process