As the current academic year draws to a close, we’re shining our lens on some of the key trends we have seen over the year.
To help shape the trends, we’ve reviewed the catering performance of 11 trusts within CST, which included 98 schools and 41,000 pupils, and compared the data with benchmarking averages for the wider industry.
1. FSM Uptake: Only 66% of eligible pupils take their Free School Meal
One of the biggest opportunities is to increase Free School Meal (FSM) uptake.
Across the trusts participating in our benchmarking project, an average of 32% of pupils were eligible for FSM, with 66% of eligible pupils taking a school meal. By comparison, the industry benchmark sits at 26% eligibility and 69% uptake.
The question is – why is uptake so low? There is unlikely to be a single answer. Food quality, limited menu choice, long queues, dining environment, or simply pupils preferring packed lunches can all influence whether eligible children choose to take a school meal. Without understanding the root cause, schools risk missing an opportunity to improve both pupil experience and catering performance.
The good news is that these challenges can be addressed. Schools and trusts should use data and pupil feedback to identify what’s driving low uptake before deciding on the right solution. This could involve a Consumer Insight survey to reveal the areas of the dining service pupils would like to see improved. Or it might be that schools that manage the catering in-house would benefit from a catering management system such as Litmus Edge to review products and suppliers to help increase the amount of spend on the plate.
With the Government expanding FSM eligibility from September 2026, many schools will see these figures change significantly over the coming year. The challenge won’t simply be accommodating additional meals, but ensuring catering operations remain financially sustainable while maintaining quality and service. Improving uptake among eligible pupils isn’t just about increasing meal numbers – it’s about ensuring every child entitled to a nutritious meal feels encouraged to take one.
2. Understanding your cost base has never been more important
Food inflation may have stabilised compared to previous years, but financial pressures haven’t disappeared.
Our benchmarking shows:
- Primary schools typically spend 52% of catering income on food, while secondaries average 47%.
- Labour remains the single biggest operational cost, accounting for 52% of income in primary schools and 43% in secondary schools.
- Sundry costs account for approximately 11% of sales in primary schools and 7% in secondary schools.
Understanding whether your operation sits above or below these benchmarks provides valuable context. If costs are significantly higher than comparable schools, it raises important questions around procurement, staffing structures, menu engineering or operational efficiency.
3. Every school should know its key performance indicators
Successful catering operations aren’t managed through instinct alone.
The strongest-performing schools consistently monitor a balanced set of KPIs covering customer satisfaction, financial performance, operational standards and contract management. These measures help identify issues early, drive continuous improvement and provide objective evidence of performance.
Platforms such as Litmus Verify make this process significantly easier by bringing key performance data together in one place, giving schools and trusts greater visibility of how their catering operation is performing. From contract compliance and financial performance to service standards and customer feedback, having access to real-time insights enables schools to make informed decisions, address issues before they escalate.
4. Prepare now for what’s coming next
There are two significant developments that will affect school catering over the next two years:
- The expansion of Free School Meal eligibility in September 2026, bringing increased demand alongside additional funding.
- The proposed new School Food Standards, with implementation expected to begin in primary schools from September 2027 and secondary schools from September 2028. These proposals include greater emphasis on fresh food, fibre, wholegrains and plant proteins, alongside restrictions on processed foods and sugary options.
These changes will require schools to think carefully about budgets, procurement, staffing, facilities and operational capacity. If schools are unclear on their operational performance, robust benchmark data provides an invaluable starting point for those conversations.
5. Benchmarking is about continuous improvement, not comparison
Perhaps the biggest misconception about benchmarking is that it’s about finding out who’s ‘best’.
In reality, effective benchmarking helps schools answer much more important questions:
- Are we delivering value for money?
- Are our costs in line with similar schools?
- Are we maximising meal uptake?
- Where are the biggest opportunities to improve?
- Are we prepared for future policy changes?
Looking ahead
The education catering landscape is evolving rapidly. Rising expectations, changing legislation and increasing financial pressures mean schools need better data than ever before.
We recently welcomed schools and trusts to our latest webinar – School Catering Benchmark Insights 2026 – where we shared the results from the recent benchmarking exercise with The Confederation of Schools Trust (CST).
Our benchmarking programmes provide schools and trusts with independent insight that supports better decision making, identifies opportunities for improvement and helps ensure catering services remain both high quality and financially sustainable.
You can hear more and view the webinar recording here.
The Litmus team
