Correspondence

DfE Update local authorities: 17 June 2026

Published 17 June 2026

Applies to England

1. Information: Free school meal rate uplifts for academic year 2026 to 2027

We are implementing a free school meal rate uplift to £2.66 for academic year 2026 to 2027.

This applies to:

• universal infant free school meals
• further education free meals
• school sixth forms, who will receive specific meal funding for the first time. This will be at the same £2.66 meal rate and will only apply to the expanded cohort

2. Information: Universal infant free school meal allocations 2026 to 2027

We have published the conditions of grant for universal infant free school meals (UIFSM) allocations for the academic year 2026 to 2027.

We will adjust the provisional payment for the UIFSM grant in 2026 downwards by 20%, based on DfE forecasts of infant pupils becoming eligible for the new free school meals entitlement.

This is not a reduction in overall funding, but instead a transfer between 2 different funding streams.

Read our UIFSM guidance at the link above to understand how this will work.

We will publish funding allocations before the end of June 2026.

Final UIFSM payments will be reconciled in June 2027, for the period of September 2026 to March 2027. We will adjust these as needed to ensure each school receives the correct amount overall.

3. Information: Adult skills funding postcode updates

We have updated the postcode data sets for adult skills funding and new strategic authorities.

This is the final update to academic year 2025 to 2026 data and includes new data for 7 new strategic authorities in readiness for academic year 2026 to 2027:

• Hull and East Yorkshire Combined Authority
• Lancashire Combined County Authority
• Greater Lincolnshire Combined County Authority
• Devon and Torbay Combined County Authority
• Buckinghamshire Council
• Surrey County Council
• Warwickshire County Council

We have also published the adult skills fund (ASF) postcode data files and related guidance information.

4. Information: Is your school’s money working as hard as it should?

Read the latest Buying for Schools blog, where DfE’s Chris McGunnigle returns with an update on the tools and resources available to help you review your banking arrangements.

5. Reminder: Submit your post-16 subcontracting standard report by Monday 31 August 2026

You must submit a subcontracting standard report if you subcontract £100,000 or more of post-16 provision across all relevant funding streams in the 2025 to 2026 funding year. You must also be in scope of the subcontracting standard under current DfE guidance.

Submit your completed report on or before Monday 31 August 2026 using Document exchange.

Ensure your documents are uploaded as:

• Subcontracting Standard RAG Rated Report (20005)
• Subcontracting Standard Statement (20006)
• Subcontracting standard self-assessment template (20009)

You must submit a report by the deadline if you:

• did not previously meet the subcontracting standard
• have not completed a subcontracting standard assessment

If you have already met the subcontracting standard, you do not need to submit another report until your next review cycle. Check your latest outcome letter to confirm when your next submission is due.

Read the DfE subcontracting standard guidance for full requirements, including:

• scope
• evidence requirements
• validation criteria

Contact your DfE case manager or the Customer help centre if you need any further support.

6. Feedback: Help us to improve pupil premium allocation calculations

We are improving how funding information is presented, specifically calculation information about allocation statements for pupil premium funding.
 
We would welcome your feedback on the design in development and encourage participation if your role involves accessing and using allocation calculation data.
 
Online feedback sessions will run from Monday 20 July to Friday 24 July 2026. Sessions will take place on Microsoft Teams and will last up to 60 minutes.
 
Please register your expression of interest to take part. We will then contact you to confirm your session date and time.

Your feedback will help make funding information clearer, more consistent, and easier to understand.

7. Events and webinars: DfE energy for schools – a new way to buy energy for your school or trust

Monday 22 June 2026, 11am to 11:30am. Register on Eventbrite.

8. Events and webinars: Risk protection arrangement – an alternative to commercial insurance

Tuesday 30 June 2026, 11am to 11:30am. Register on Eventbrite.