Please complete our online Special Diets Referral Form.

Our policies relating to special diets requests are in line with Allergy UK guidelines and advice from the NHS and British Dietetic Association. We ask for medical evidence as this often allows us to get a better understanding of children’s dietary requirements, particularly in complex cases.

Unfortunately, we also receive a number of requests for bespoke menus, some of which are based on food preferences rather than medical requirements. As some requests are also quite restrictive, we like to be sure these diets have been recommended by a child’s doctor or allergy specialist.

We are happy to accept letters from a child’s GP or dietitian, clear hospital test results, or an allergy action plan as supporting documentation. Please note that any medical evidence can be redacted to remove personal or sensitive information — we only need to see the child’s name and their dietary requirements.

Please be aware that we cannot accept IgG intolerance test results or letters from alternative practitioners as medical evidence.

If you are unable to provide supporting documentation for any reason, we simply ask you to provide some additional information, and this is handled by our Company Nutritionist on a case-by-case basis. Failure to provide the required information may result in a delay in processing your special diet request form.

If you are still unsure, please get in touch with our Special Diets Team.

If you are having problems uploading your medical evidence or photo, this may be due to the file size. We set limits on the size of files you can upload, as large files can cause problems when you are trying to submit your form, and they take up unnecessary space on our servers.

There are ways to reduce the file size on your device which will allow you to attach them. Alternatively, you can simply choose to opt out of uploading any attachments when completing the form, then email them to us separately at specialdiets@edwardsandward.co.uk.

We recommend providing a clear, passport style photo of your child.

This photo is attached to a hard copy of your child’s photo record sheet, which includes full details of their dietary requirements and is stored in the kitchen. These are then used to help our team identify your child during preparation and service to ensure their meals are safe.

If you have any concerns about providing a photo, please feel free to get in touch with our Special Diets Team.

Meat free options are available every day as standard so there is no need to register with us if your child is vegetarian.

All schools are provided with a vegan menu which they can make available to anyone on request.

Some of our sites offer Halal options. For details, please contact your school directly.

We use vegetarian gelatine across all our sites, so it is suitable for all.

Unfortunately, we no longer accept paper or posted special diets referral forms. If you have any problems with our online form, please contact our Special Diets Team.

You will receive a confirmation email to let you know when your registration has been processed. This email will include any relevant menus, nutrition or allergen information, copies of which will also be sent to the kitchen. This process is usually completed within 3 weeks, however, times may be longer during peak periods or for new schools or pupils starting with us in September.

In some cases, we may need some more information before we can finalise your registration. Our Special Diets Team may try to contact you by email or phone so please make sure your contact details are correct.

If you have not received an email, please check your junk or spam folder, or get back in touch with our Special Diets Team if you have any concerns.

We base our adapted menus on your school’s standard options. We try our best to keep these as similar as possible but dietary restrictions and product availability mean this is not always possible. In particularly complex cases, our Company Nutritionist will work with you to find the right balance.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding your menu, nutrition or allergen information, please contact our Special Diets Team immediately.

The process of ordering from adapted menus varies from site to site. Please get in touch with your school directly for more advice.

If there has been any change to your child’s personal information or dietary requirements, please email our Special Diets Team. You will not need to resubmit medical evidence for existing allergens, however if you are adding allergens, we will need copies of any new evidence you have to support this change. We do not require medical evidence to remove allergens.

If your child no longer needs a special menu for any reason, you must confirm this with us via email before they can be put on the standard menu and/or removed from our system