School Food Standards 2027: What Schools Need to Know
Tech for Education
What do you need to know about School Food Standards 2027?
School meals are changing, and this time the update goes beyond what appears on the plate.
The Department for Education has announced an update to the School Food Standards in England, with changes planned from September 2027, subject to Parliamentary approval. The proposals include more fruit, vegetables and fibre, tighter limits on foods high in fat, sugar and salt, and new standards for breakfast provision.
There is also an important communication change for schools. Schools are being asked to prepare to publish their school food policy and menus online from September 2027.
For parents and carers, that should make it much easier to understand what is being served and where to find the latest information. For schools, it is a good reason to start looking now at menus, websites and parent communication rather than leaving everything until next summer.
What Is Changing with School Food?
The School Food Standards set out the food and drink that state funded schools in England should provide to pupils.
The proposed 2027 changes are designed to bring those standards closer to current dietary recommendations while keeping meals practical for schools and caterers.
The changes are expected to include:
- More fruit and vegetables across the school day
- More fibre rich foods
- Tighter limits on foods and drinks high in fat, sugar and salt
- New breakfast standards
- Some secondary school requirements being introduced later, from September 2028
The aim is not to make school meals unfamiliar or complicated. It is to make balanced, nutritious choices a normal part of the school day.
Schools Have Time to Prepare
The changes are not due to begin until September 2027, subject to Parliamentary approval, so schools do have time.
The DfE is already encouraging schools to review the proposed standards, speak to their catering provider and look at existing menus, contracts and procurement arrangements.
This is important because schools organise catering in different ways. Some manage meals directly, while others use local authority or external catering arrangements. The food, nutritional and allergen information must therefore continue to come from the school and its approved catering provider.
From a communication point of view, though, there is plenty that can be planned early.
School Menus Are Becoming More Important Online
One of the most useful changes for families is the expectation that schools prepare to publish their food policy and menus online.
A menu should be easy to find. Parents should not have to search through old newsletters or several pages just to see what lunch is being served next week.
A clear school food area on the website could bring together:
- The latest school menu
- The school food policy
- Breakfast club information
- After school and wraparound food information, where food is provided
- Clear signposting for allergies, intolerances and other dietary requirements
- General information on how the school supports individual food or mealtime needs, including where SEND adjustments may be required
- General information about allergies and dietary requirements
- How parents and carers can contact the school about food requirements
- Useful links or information supplied by the school catering provider
The website can then become the reliable place families know to check, rather than the same information being scattered across different channels.
Could School Menus Be Easier to Read Too?
This is where we think schools have an opportunity to make the information much more useful.
A menu may contain all the right information, but if it is crowded, difficult to read on a phone or designed only for printing, it can still be frustrating for families.
Once the menu information has been approved by the school and its caterer, North East Schools can help present that information in a clearer, school branded format.
That could include a printable menu for sending home, an accessible version for the school website and artwork formatted for digital screens around the school.
The content itself still comes from the school or catering provider. We are simply helping make the approved information clearer, easier to read and consistent with the rest of the school communication.
One Menu, More Than One Format
Schools already communicate in lots of different places. The website, newsletters, reception areas, dining halls and digital screens may all be used by different people at different times.
Rather than redesigning the same information over and over again, one approved menu can be adapted into several useful formats.
For example:
- An A4 printable menu for parents and noticeboards
- A clear PDF or web version for the school website
- A landscape version for school digital screens
- A simple parent update for newsletters or social media
This can form part of a wider school communication package, helping the same information stay consistent wherever families see it.
Supporting Children with Allergies, Intolerances and Other Dietary Needs
Food communication becomes even more important for families managing allergies, intolerances, medical needs, religious requirements or other dietary needs.
An allergy and an intolerance are not the same thing, so schools should avoid treating every dietary requirement as one category. The important point for communication is that parents and carers know who to contact, what information the school needs and where the relevant policy or process can be found.
Schools and caterers have specific responsibilities around allergen information and supporting pupils with medical conditions. Any public menu or designed material should therefore use information that has already been checked and approved by the school and its catering provider.
A school website can make the process much clearer by explaining who parents should contact, where the school food and allergy policies can be found, and how families should raise a new or changing dietary requirement.
The aim is not to place individual medical information online. It is to make the school process easy for families to understand and to signpost them to the right person quickly.
Breakfast Clubs Need Clear Communication Too
The new standards also introduce clearer expectations around breakfast provision, so the changes are not only about what is served at lunchtime.
With breakfast clubs becoming a bigger part of school life, schools should review how breakfast information is shared with parents and carers alongside the food itself.
Useful information could include opening times, who can attend, whether booking is needed, what is provided, how dietary requirements are handled and how the breakfast club links with any existing wraparound care.
This information can work across the website, printed materials and digital screens, giving families clear and consistent messages wherever they see them.
What About Food at After School Clubs?
School food does not stop at lunchtime. The standards can also apply to food and drink provided to pupils on school premises later in the day, including after school clubs and wraparound provision.
That means schools may need to look at the full day of food provision rather than treating breakfast, lunch and after school food as completely separate areas.
From a communication point of view, parents may need clear information about what food is available after school, which children are included, whether there is an additional charge and how dietary requirements are managed.
If the information already exists, North East Schools can help present the approved details consistently across the website, parent materials and digital screens.
Making School Food Inclusive for Children with SEND
SEND does not automatically mean a child needs a different meal, but some children may need additional support around food, the dining environment or the way information is communicated.
For example, a child may have sensory needs, need a quieter or earlier dining arrangement, require a specific reasonable adjustment, or have food requirements linked to a medical condition or an Education, Health and Care Plan.
The right arrangements will be individual to the child and should be agreed by the school with families and relevant professionals. Public website content should not describe an individual pupil’s needs.
What the website can do is make the school process clear. Parents and carers should know who to speak to if their child needs additional support with food or mealtimes and where they can find general information about the school’s approach.
What Should Schools Do Now?
There is no need to rush into a complete overhaul, but now is a good time to look at school food across the whole day and ask a few simple questions:
- Where does our current lunch menu sit on the website?
- Can parents find breakfast club information quickly?
- Do we provide food during after school or wraparound provision, and is that information clear?
- Is our school food policy easy to find?
- Is our allergy safety information and parent signposting clear?
- Do families know who to contact about intolerances, medical diets or other dietary requirements?
- Are there children who need additional support or reasonable adjustments around food or mealtimes?
- Who supplies and approves our menu and allergen information?
- Does our catering contract affect how menus can be presented or branded?
- Could the same approved information be used more consistently across print, web and digital screens?
If an external caterer already supplies designed menus, it is worth checking the catering contract or service agreement before changing the artwork. Where the school is free to present approved information itself, a clearer branded design can make that information much easier for families to use.
Making School Food Information Easier for Families
The School Food Standards changes are ultimately about giving children healthier choices, but good communication will be an important part of making the changes work for families.
Parents and carers should be able to see what is being offered at lunch, understand breakfast or after school provision where it applies, and know exactly where to go if their child has an allergy, intolerance, dietary requirement or needs additional support around food.
Staff should also be able to update this information without creating unnecessary extra work.
At North East Schools, we can support schools with the website side of that process and help turn approved school or caterer information into clear, accessible designs for print and digital use.
That could mean one approved set of information being adapted into a website page, printable menu, parent notice and digital screen artwork, while the school and caterer remain responsible for the food, nutritional and allergen content.
A little planning now can make school food communication much simpler when the new standards arrive.