The school meals service is due to run until the end of the academic year in July 2026 and the community meals service will stop at the end of February 2026. CATERed provide school meals in 59 schools serving over 10,000 meals a day.
CATERed was set up in 2015 as a co-operative trading company jointly owned by local schools and Plymouth City Council to provide high quality school meals using fresh, locally and regionally sourced, seasonal ingredients to serve hot, freshly prepared school lunches by trained staff.
Due to continually rising costs and the level of funding available for benefit-based free school meals (FSM) and Universal Infant Free School Meals (UIFSM) this is no longer viable – the sums simply no longer add up.
Universal Infant Free School Meals are currently funded at £2.61 per pupil per day. This rate has increased by an average of 1.1% over the last two years.
Government have announced that the FSM rate in England will be increased by just 2% (5 pence) from September 2026. Funding rates in Scotland (£3.30) and Wales (£3.20) far exceed those in England.
Member schools will now have time to find alternative providers – or decide to provide school meals themselves – before the next academic year. It is anticipated that school-based CATERed staff will transfer into the school that they currently work in or to new providers.
Brad Pearce, managing director of CATERed, said: “All of us at CATERed are hugely proud of what we have achieved together over the last ten years.
“We have always been highly ambitious about raising standards of school meals provision and have strived to always provide high quality, appetising meals using fresh, seasonal, local and organic ingredients. We have been proud that what we do has been recognised nationally. We are equally proud of our relationship with all of our schools and academies.
“Sadly, the financial climate has been increasingly challenging in the last few years and with the additional costs we are now facing it is no longer possible to break even. I know that other providers across England are also ceasing services and closing.
“We have explored a number of options but without the Government recognising the true cost to provide the service through an index-linked, appropriate funding rate, or ongoing external financial support, it is not possible to continue. Schools can still benefit from the skills of our schools-based staff when they transfer into schools or to new providers.
“It is obviously a very difficult and tremendously sad time for the CATERed community, but we will continue to provide an excellent service until it is the time for schools, or new providers, to take over.”