Food brought in from home (packed lunch) policies

Posted on 2 October 2025 in News and updates

Since September 2025, early years providers have been required to have regard to the Early Years Foundation Stage nutrition guidance. This guidance supports settings to meet the EYFS requirement that meals, snacks and drinks provided to children must be healthy, balanced and nutritious, whether meals are served in the setting or brought from home.

This forms part of the Government’s commitment to give children the best start in life by supporting healthy eating habits in the early years and helping to reduce health inequalities.

If your setting has chosen to implement a policy on food brought in from home, the Department for Education wants to hear your questions and early concerns about how implementing the policy is working in practice. This will help us understand what further information and support would be helpful for providers to get the most out of this guidance.