1. Is there a charge for primary breakfast provision?
No payment is required; breakfast is provided free of charge. Breakfast club attendance depends on a successful application.
2. Does an application have to be made for every child who will attend breakfast club?
Yes. An application must be made for all children before they attend breakfast club.
Only 1 application is required per household even if children attend different schools (the form allows you to choose the school for each child).
To complete an application, visit: - Primary School Free Breakfast Club
3. I do not have the resources to complete an application form on-line. What can I do to apply for a place?
Your school administration staff should be available to support you, but in their absence, please call Education Support on 01443 281141.
4. How does the application process work?
The application must be made on-line. To complete an application, visit: - Primary School Free Breakfast Club. If the application is successful, a place will be allocated and an automated email will be sent to your inbox to state this, the email will include information about the school that has been selected and the name(s) of the child(ren) that have been allocated a place. If there is no space available at this time, you will be notified, and the child(ren) will be placed onto the digital waiting list. When a place becomes available, you will receive an email notification that the child(ren) has been added onto the breakfast club register and they can now attend the breakfast club.
5. It is part way through the term, and a change in personal circumstances now means I need to access breakfast club. Can I still apply?
Yes, you can still apply. Please refer to question 4 for further information.
6. What if my child has a medically prescribed dietary requirement?
Every effort will be made to support pupils who have a medically prescribed dietary requirement, but breakfast cannot be provided until the appropriate medical evidence is submitted and a bespoke menu created for them (please note, this can take up to 21 days to arrange, or longer if the diet is complex).
If your child needs a medically prescribed diet, and does not have the necessary arrangements in place with Catering Services, you are encouraged to apply for this now at: http://www.rctcbc.gov.uk/MedicallyPrescribedDiet
You do not have to wait until the application process for breakfast club opens. Applying now for the medically prescribed diet will help to reduce delays to the service provision.
7. I have applied for the medically prescribed diet, but it is still in progress, and I have not yet received notification that is has been implemented. Can my child attend breakfast club?
Yes, your child can attend breakfast club, however, we cannot feed your child until the necessary arrangements are in place. Please give your child breakfast at home before you bring them to the breakfast club session(s).
8. What time does the breakfast club start and finish?
Please check this information directly with the school.
9. Why can’t every child that attends the school, get an automatic registration for free breakfast club?
Several factors are considered for the safe planning and organisation of a free breakfast club.
Free breakfast club takes place before the school day so a bespoke risk assessment is undertaken to establish the number of pupils (over and under the age of 5), which can be safely fed and supervised during this period in the space available.
10. Has the free breakfast club application closed?
No, the free breakfast club application process has not closed, the on-line application will remain open.
11. If there is no availability now, how will this change in the future?
Every school has a dashboard to monitor attendance of those who are registered, and regular non-attenders will be approached to establish whether the place is required or whether it can be released for someone on the waiting list. It is important to note that the families of children that do not eat free breakfast in the provision will also be contacted, as the provision has been established with the clear intention of providing free breakfast for the pupils that require it. Where demand continues to exceed available capacity, the school and Catering Services will work together to provide additional places.
12. I completed and submitted the application form to register my child(ren) for free breakfast club, but I haven’t seen any email, why is this?
It is possible that you forgot to tick a box which requests agreement for your data to be used. This box has to be ticked or the application remains incomplete, and a place will not be allocated.
If you are sure you have completed the application process, it may be that the email has been automatically filtered into SPAM or JUNK folders, or not delivered due to an error in the email address provided. Please check these folders.
13. I am still unsure if I have been successful in registering my child(ren) for the free breakfast club. How can I check this information?
Every school has access to live information on all successful registrations for their free breakfast club. Please ask your school to check their free breakfast club data dashboard.
14. I registered my Nursery age child(ren) to attend, but the school has said they cannot currently accept Nursery children in the free breakfast club. Why is this?
Nursery age children require extra supervision during free breakfast club; if the school has said they are currently not accepting these younger children, the decision will have been based on their risk assessment and staffing levels to meet legal requirements to suitably support them.
15. My children use free breakfast club so I can go to work, but there is no space available.
It is recognised that many parents/carers will benefit from bringing their children to the site in advance of the start of the school day. However, the purpose of free breakfast club is to provide children with a free breakfast at the start the school day.
If you child does not require a healthy free breakfast prior to the start of the school day, then parents/carers are expected to make their own childcare arrangements before the start of the school day.
16. I registered my child(ren) for the free breakfast club, as I may need to use it one day in the future, but I now realise that there are other families who use the club regularly and have not been successful in securing a place. How do I withdraw my registration?
You can contact your school administration team via email (or in person) and provide them with the basic details (and reservation number if possible), they will then liaise with the local authority to arrange that the place is released to those on the reserve/waiting list. There might be a short delay before these additional places can be released and places confirmed with new parents/carers.
17. If I withdraw the place/s I have reserved for my child(ren), can I automatically pass it over to my friend?
It is not possible to transfer a place; once released. The school will re-allocate a place in due course based on the waiting list they hold. However, this will require some administrative processes and liaison with the local authority to ensure that digital records are appropriately amended and updated.
18. Is there a waiting list I can place my child(ren) on?
Providing you complete the information in the application form, the information you supply will be automatically stored on a waiting list in readiness for when places become available.
19. I believe that some of the families who have registered successfully, don’t ever use the service. Will spaces be released if people are not using the free breakfast club?
Every school will monitor the attendance of those who are registered to attend, and regular non-attenders will be approached to establish whether the place is required or whether it can be released for someone on the reserve/waiting list.
20. I have forgotten to apply on-line for the free breakfast club. What should if I do?
If your child(ren) have not been registered on-line to attend free breakfast club, but the school still has availability, it is essential that you register them online before bringing them to free breakfast club.
21. I have been told that the free breakfast club is full. What if I just drop my child(ren) off?
You are respectfully asked not to bring children to the free breakfast club if you have not successfully secured a place.