School meals

Find information on early years, primary and secondary school meals below.

At times we may experience supply chain and resourcing issues. This can lead to menu options needing to change at short notice. We ensure the replacement meal is nutritious and healthy and try to rectify issue as best as we can and as quick as possible.

To find out more about free school meals and apply, visit the School Clothing Grant and Free School Meals webpage.

Our Early Years schools provide a healthy and nutritious lunch to all children 

View the 2024/25 early years menus.

Week 1 – 14 April, 5 May, 26 May, 16 June

Week 2 – 21 April, 12 May, 2 June, 23 June

Week 3 – 28 April, 19 May, 9 June, 30 June

Cost: £2.43 – All options come with a choice of water or milk included in the price.

In Primary schools, a healthy and nutritious lunch is available to all children.

View the 2024/25 primary school menus.

Week 1 – 14 April, 5 May, 26 May, 16 June

Week 2 – 21 April, 12 May, 2 June, 23 June

Week 3 – 28 April, 19 May, 9 June, 30 June

Cost: £2.43 – Starter, main choice or light option accompanied with their carbohydrate and vegetables, milk or flavoured milk and dessert. Pupils can have as much salad, bread and water as they want

In Secondary schools we offer a wide range, aimed to provide a high quality selection for young people. 
Breakfast, morning break and lunch menus are on offer.
We provide a pre-order lunch service food may be chosen and paid for before 10.45am, useful for pupils involved in lunchtime activities. 

View the 2024/25 secondary school menus.

Week 1 – 14 April, 5 May, 26 May, 16 June

Week 2 – 21 April, 12 May, 2 June, 23 June

Week 3 – 28 April, 19 May, 9 June, 30 June

Cost: £2.54 - provides the customer with Soup or Yoghurt, Main course or Sandwich/Baguette, Fruit and a Drink.

View the 2024/25 vegan menus.

Week 1 – 14 April, 5 May, 26 May, 16 June

Week 2 – 21 April, 12 May, 2 June, 23 June

Week 3 – 28 April, 19 May, 9 June, 30 June

View the 2024/25 dairy free menus.

Week 1 – 14 April, 5 May, 26 May, 16 June

Week 2 – 21 April, 12 May, 2 June, 23 June

Week 3 – 28 April, 19 May, 9 June, 30 June

View the 2024/25 Halal menus.

Week 1 – 14 April, 5 May, 26 May, 16 June

Week 2 – 21 April, 12 May, 2 June, 23 June

Week 3 – 28 April, 19 May, 9 June, 30 June

View allergen information regarding all food items as detailed on Nursery, Primary and Secondary school menus.

If you have any questions about school meals, please contact us.

If your child requires a special diet e.g. gluten free, dairy free etc, please arrange for their Specialist Diet Referral form to be sent to the school so that appropriate catering arrangements can be made.

All products and dietary requests are taken seriously, and processes are in place to ensure that health and safety standards are met in the production and serving of all meals. As multi-cultural schools we provide an array of meals to ensure we are as inclusive as possible. To ensure that we keep to all dietary and religious needs we have a cohesive food safety system in place and produce meals accordingly.

Read the Medically Referred Dietary Provision.

Learning and health go hand in hand. Good health of children and young people are a prerequisite for educational achievement. East Dunbartonshire Council, recognises the importance of providing and promoting healthy school lunches within all our schools.

The idea is simple and adheres to The Schools (Health Promotion and Nutrition) (Scotland) Act 2007 by providing wholesome, nutritionally balanced meals whilst encourage children to make healthier eating choices such as eating more fruit, vegetables and carbohydrates and reducing the intake of foods high in fat and sugar.

Our lunch menus follows strict governmental nutritional guidelines Nutritional Requirements for Food and Drink in Schools (Scotland) Regulations 2020. There are 13 food and drink standards and 14 nutrient standards.  This means all recipes are nutritionally analysed to ensure each meal has a good mix of protein, iron, fibre, vitamins and minerals to provide a healthy balance across all menu choices.  We have made a huge commitment to make school meals appetising and healthier for children.

The School meal comprises of:

• Hot meal with soup or dessert and a drink or a mix and match item with soup or dessert and a drink
• Vegetables and salad will be served daily
• Fresh Fruit will be offered as an alternative to vegetables and salad and as a dessert option
• Sandwiches will be served with a choice of fillings and salad daily
• Milk, water and flavoured milk will be served daily
• Free bread will be served daily
• In line with the government guidelines, oily fish must be included in the menu therefore oily fish will be on the menu once in the 3-week rotation.

We are proud to hold the Food for Life Served Here Bronze award in East Dunbartonshire Council’s primary schools from 2022. This is a nationally recognised mark of food quality for school meals - accredited by Soil Association Scotland - which positively impact pupils, kitchen teams and the local economy. In line with the Food for Life Served Here awarding criteria, all meals served in East Dunbartonshire’s primary schools meet the 13 standards associated with the bronze award which include:

• At least 75% of dishes on the menu are freshly prepared
• Recipes free from trans fats and additives
• All meat is from farms which satisfy UK animal welfare standards (ie. Red tractor assured, QMS)
• All fish must be Marine Conservation Society approved and not be on their ‘fish to avoid’ list
• Eggs are from free range hens
• Where possible vegetables are purchased in season.

The award scheme is funded by the Scottish Government and supports local authorities to put more local food on the table and serve fresh, healthy, and sustainable meals in schools. The scheme aims to help tackle the many issues and concerns facing our planet. Making small changes to the way we grow, produce, buy, cook and eat our food will help build a more positive future for us all.

Want to know more about Food for Life? Watch the Food for Life video.

We try to use local Scottish producers in all aspects of our school lunch menu. By buying local we can support our farmers, create jobs and boost our local economy, whilst enjoying delicious, fresh and seasonal produce. Some of the Scottish companies we use are:

George Carruthers & Sons Ltd- When in season, George Carruthers & Sons Ltd provides East Dunbartonshire schools with Scottish blueberries, broccoli, carrots, potatoes, raspberries, strawberries, and turnips. Check out the seasonality calendar displayed in your school dining hall to see when these fruits and vegetables are in season in Scotland

McLays Butchers - We work with McLays to ensure high quality meat to all our schools in East Dunbartonshire. They source their meat in Scotland from farms in Perthshire and Aviemore. All meat products we use within our schools kitchens are traceable from farm to plate from a UK farm assurance scheme, such as Quality Meat Scotland (QMS) or Red Tractor. McLays are also working on being environmentally friendly. 90% of all plastics are clear and can be recycled, we avoid the use of single-use plastics. McLays also use delivery vehicles of Euro 6 standard to reduce CO2 emissions.

Muller – Muller provide East Dunbartonshire school with milk/milk alternatives and yoghurts. Their milk is 100% natural with nothing added high in protein and a source of Calcium. Their bottles are made onsite from re-cycled materials and are 100% recyclable.

During the school year East Dunbartonshire schools will be participating in various theme days. If your child's school is taking part, posters will be on display in the school.

All schools are now live with cashless catering on our Ipay Impact system.

iPay Impact will allow you to view children’s meal choices, top up and manage multiple children’s accounts by linking them all to one account, as well as save card details making topping up quick and easy. If your child attends primary you will also be able to pre-order their meal in advance.

If you have any questions then please get in touch with the Catering Payments Support Team at: cateringpayments@eastdunbarton.gov.uk

Your school will have issued you a letter with details of how to register with our cashless provider ipayimpact and a unique reference for each of your children. Once you have registered and added all children to your account you can log in to ipayimpact using the button below to top up each child’s account.

Visit our Cashless Catering FAQ's for more information or email cateringpayments@eastdunbarton.gov.uk with any further enquiries.