School food policies

Understand your requirements

There's no statutory requirement for your school to have a school food policy. 

If you do decide to create a school food policy, you'll need to make sure that it reflects and complies with the regulations below.

Follow the school food standards

The national school food standards set out your duty to provide nutritious food for pupils, and encourage healthy eating. 

The Requirements for School Food Regulations 2014 introduced these standards for school food into law, and specify which types of food and drinks should be served at school and how often. 

The DfE has created a package of resources, including a practical guide to the food standards, to help you plan and provide healthy food.

plenty of fruit and vegetables plenty of unrefined starchy foods some meat, fish, eggs, beans and other non-dairy sources of protein some milk and dairy foods a small amount of