School Meals

From September 2026, school meals at Forge Wood will be provided by Aspens Services Ltd.      

As a specialist school caterer, Aspens is dedicated to serving schools and understands the important role great food plays in the school day. Their experienced catering teams prepare fresh, nutritious meals each day, offering a range of choices designed to appeal to different tastes and dietary needs.

To find out more about Aspens and their approach to school catering, please view their information leaflet or visit the Aspens Services website.

Menus

You can view our current school menu here:

School Meal Costs

Under the Government's Universal Infant Free School Meals scheme, all children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are entitled to a free school meal every day.

For children in Years 3 to 6, school meals cost £2.80 per day, unless your child is eligible for and registered for Free School Meals.

To find out more about Free School Meals and how to apply, please visit Apply for free school meals - GOV.UK . Please also visit our dedicated page on our website here.

Ordering Meals with SchoolGrid

We use SchoolGrid, an online meal ordering and payment system, to manage school meals.  

Through SchoolGrid, parents and carers can:

• View menus and meal choices
• Order meals in advance
• Make payments securely online
• Manage dietary and allergy information

Meals must be ordered by 9:00am on the day they are required.

You can order a main meal and a dessert daily.  Yoghurt, jelly or fruit are also available for your child to select from the counter with their meal as an alternative dessert option.

SchoolGrid orders can be placed up to a term in advance if there is sufficient credit on your account.

You can:

• Learn more about SchoolGrid [here]
• Watch the SchoolGrid parent guide video [here]
• Access your SchoolGrid account via [this link]

If you need technical support or troubleshooting help, please contact SchoolGrid helpdesk at:

• Email: support@schoolgrid.co.uk
• Telephone: 01506 300 310

Allergy Safety

At Forge Wood, the safety and wellbeing of children with allergies is a priority. We are committed to creating a safe, inclusive and supportive environment where all pupils can participate fully in school life. Our approach follows the Department for Education's statutory guidance on Allergy Safety in Schools.

We work closely with families, catering providers and healthcare professionals to ensure that appropriate arrangements are in place for pupils with allergies, food intolerances and medical dietary requirements.

What Parents and Carers Need to Do

To help us keep your child safe, please ensure that you:

• Inform the school office of any allergies, intolerances or medical dietary requirements as soon as possible.
• If your child has any allergies, intolerances, or medical dietary requirements, please complete the Aspens Allergy and Medical Diet Request Form. An Aspens team member will then be in touch to discuss your child's requirements and work with you to identify safe and appropriate meal options. Aspens will aim to complete this process within 10 working days of receiving all required information.
• Complete any required document, such as Individual Healthcare Plan, if requested by the school.
• Keep us updated if your child's condition, treatment or medication changes.
• Ensure any prescribed emergency medication, including adrenaline auto-injectors (AAIs), is in date and available in school.

Further information can be found here

Introduction to Aspens 

Aspens and SchoolGrid Primary Allergy Policy

Aspens Allergy & Medical Diet Request Form

Aspens Allergy Policy

Food Brought into School, including Packed Lunches

The school promotes a culture of allergy awareness, inclusion and shared responsibility. We ask all parents and carers to support our efforts to minimise the risk of accidental allergen exposure for pupils, staff and visitors with allergies.

Please do not send nuts or products containing nuts into school. Parents and carers are encouraged to check ingredient labels carefully before sending food into school.

To keep all children safe, we ask that:

• Children do not share food, drinks, snacks, lunchbox items, utensils or food containers with others.
• Any food brought into school for celebrations, special events or curriculum activities is agreed with the school in advance.
• Parents and carers provide clear ingredient information for food supplied for school events.

We appreciate the support of our school community in helping to create a safe and inclusive environment where all children can learn, eat and participate confidently in school life. This includes supporting awareness of the risks associated with food sharing and helping children to understand the importance of respecting the medical needs of others.

 

**Please note, Forge Wood Primary School endeavours to best manage and minimise the risk of allergic reactions to keep both our children and staff safe.  In view of this, we respectfully ask families not to send in nut products in their child's lunch or snack**

To see our healthy lunch box guide, please see the download at the bottom of this page.

Fruit and Vegetable Scheme

The school takes part in the ‘Fruit and Vegetable Scheme’ which enables each child in EYFS and KS1 to have a piece of fruit or vegetable each day free of any charge. For those children in KS2, please provide your child with a piece of fruit or vegetable for their daily snack.

Children are encouraged to bring a water bottle into school each day, which can be refilled from our drinking water taps. Please make sure that these are clearly named.
 

We are a 'Cool Milk' school

register your child today to receive free and subsidised school milk

Cool Milk