Tēnā koutou katoa
Term 4 is moving ahead. For many senior students, derived exams will be behind them and NCEA and scholarship exams are now underway or soon to begin. We wish these senior students every success during this demanding period and acknowledge the dedication of teachers and school staff who are supporting them.
Thank you to the many schools that have already confirmed you accept the 2027 Conditions of Participation. If you are an internal model school and have not yet responded, this is now overdue. For schools in external and iwi hapū delivery models, responses are due by 11 November. Confirming acceptance helps us plan for a smooth transition into the 2027 school year.
A quick reminder to keep your lunch ordering numbers up to date as attendance and school activities change through the remainder of the term. Keeping your supplier or meal provider informed about exams, study leave, camps, events, shared lunches and your last lunch day for the year will help ensure the right number of lunches are delivered and reduce unnecessary surplus. This, in turn, will allow for reinvestment in the programme and more schools to join.
Thank you for your continued support of the Healthy School Lunches programme and your commitment to ensuring students have access to nutritious lunches as we head towards the end of another busy year.
Nāku noa, nā
Andrew Gibson
General Manager – Strategic Programmes
Te Tāhuhu o te Mātauranga | Ministry of Education
Reminder: Conditions of Participation#
All schools and kura must confirm acceptance of the Conditions of Participation for the 2027 school year to continue being involved in the programme. Responses are due now.
Key dates#
- Schools on all delivery models (except internal receiving schools) must confirm acceptance by 11 November 2026.
- Internal model head schools were required to confirm acceptance by 21 October 2026. This is now overdue.
Internal model schools#
Funding agreements will be sent to internal model head schools once the signed Conditions of Participation has been received.
Schools that receive lunches from an internal model head school will receive their Conditions of Participation once the head school has confirmed it will continue providing lunches in 2027.
The 2027 Conditions of Participation:
- replace the 2025/2026 Partnership Agreement
- outline how schools, meal providers and the Ministry will work together to support the delivery of the programme.
A copy was sent to schools from the school lunches procurement mailbox (excluding internal receiving schools) late in Term 3. Email the signed document, confirmation of your school's acceptance or any questions to us as soon as possible.
Email: [email protected]
Term 3 survey results #
Thank you for the schools that provided feedback about the programme through the Term 3 surveys. We had 63% of all schools respond. High-level feedback to share is below.
Overall, main themes across all programme school lunch models were:
- lunches reduce student hunger, improve student wellbeing and increase student participation in class
- delivery reliability and local relationships are often strong
- students want variety and fewer repeated meals
- taste, appearance, and texture strongly affect whether students eat the lunches
- familiar, simple meals are often more popular with students
- reliable delivery, good communication and quick responses are highly valued by participating schools.
Read more about reporting and monitoring on our website.
Reporting and monitoring for Healthy School Lunches
Reminder: food safety notification obligations #
All schools and meal providers participating in the programme must notify their Healthy School Lunches senior advisor within 2 hours of a food safety incident.
You need to notify us even if no harm was done or the incident seems minor. We need to know about incidents so that we can accurately track food safety performance across the programme and identify corrective actions quickly to avoid it happening again. This requirement applies to all models in the programme (internal, external and iwi hapū).
See more information about how to respond to a food safety incident:
External model update #
Help reduce surplus meals by updating your orders #
This is an important reminder to continue to review your lunch orders to make sure they accurately reflect what is happening at your school. Keeping orders up to date helps reduce surplus meals, makes sure funding is used effectively and supports suppliers to plan and deliver lunches successfully.
You should update your orders for any planned changes to regular school operations:
- special events, celebrations, or themed weeks when school lunches from the programme may not be required on that day
- teacher-only days
- school camps, sports tournaments, excursions and other off-site activities
- senior students going on study or exam leave or finishing for the year
- any end-of-year schedule changes.
Regular review of your meal order numbers and keeping your supplier informed of any upcoming changes will help make sure the right number of lunches are delivered each day and reduce unnecessary food waste and surplus.
Some suppliers require 5 to 10 working day notice periods, so don’t forget to modify orders within this time frame. If you are unsure what your notice period is, check with your supplier.
Thank you for your continued support in helping the programme run smoothly for students, schools and suppliers alike.
Internal model update #
2027 internal model funding agreement #
A reminder to sign and return the Conditions of Participation to us by email as soon as possible. It is now overdue.
Once the signed Conditions of Participation has been returned, your 2027 Funding Agreement will be sent via DocuSign for you to sign. All funding agreements must be signed and returned by Friday 4 December 2026. Email us if you have any questions.
Email: [email protected]
Healthy School Lunches recipes #
3 new recipes have been added to our website that are both nutritious and delicious:
- ham and cheese pasta salad
- hawaiian pizza
- honey, soy and sesame chicken with vegetables on rice.
Healthy School Lunches recipes
The order amounts for these recipes can be easily determined by using the Healthy School Lunches recipe quantity calculator on our website.
So far, the recipes have received positive feedback from schools and kura. The new recipes are reportedly easy to use, and have clear instructions, portion guidance and dietary substitution options. Schools are telling us that the meals are proving to be popular with students.
10-day surplus lunch count and end-of-lunch waste measure #
Complete your 10-day surplus lunch count and end-of-lunch waste measure this term. Your findings can be submitted through the Term 4 survey which will be emailed out later this term.
If you have any questions or need support, contact your Healthy School Lunches senior advisor.
Upcoming online workshops #
There are online webinars and workshops available to internal model schools and kura. Schools are encouraged to support their lunch staff to attend these sessions as a valuable professional development opportunity to refresh or learn new skills.
Participation in the workshops is free. It is a proactive use of lunch funding to cover staff wages while participating. The following sessions are available.
- Business continuity planning – Tuesday 10 November 2026.
- Waste management – Tuesday 17 November 2026.
- Introductory food safety - Thursday 26 November 2026.
- Online end-of-term financial reporting – Tuesday 1 December 2026.
- Introductory lunch costing – Wednesday 27 January 2027.
See more information and registration details:
Resources for meal providers for the internal model and iwi hapū delivery model
