At the same time, the legal landscape is evolving. Natasha's Law strengthened allergen labelling requirements for prepacked food, while the School Food Standards continue to shape what pupils should be offered. Now, Benedict's Law introduces further measures designed to protect children with allergies in educational settings. Together, these requirements place greater emphasis on transparency, accountability, and effective allergen communication. 

But what do these laws mean in practice? Which settings do they apply to, and what steps do schools and caterers need to take to stay compliant? 

Whether you're responsible for a maintained school, academy, independent school, school-based nursery, college or outsourced catering operation, this guide explains how Natasha's Law, the School Food Standards and Benedict's Law fit together. We'll break down who is affected, what each requirement involves, and the practical steps you can take to reduce risk, protect pupils and make allergen management easier to manage every day. 

What food labelling laws apply to schools in England? 

Schools in England now need to comply with three separate legal and statutory frameworks that affect school food provision: 

 Although these laws cover different areas, they all centre around accurate ingredient information and clear processes that help keep pupils safe. 

Why food labelling compliance matters in schools 

Food allergies affect an estimated 6-8% of children, making accurate allergen management a pivotal component t of school food provision. Alongside serving healthy meals, schools must ensure accurate allergen information is available, staff understand how to manage allergy risks, and clear procedures are in place if an allergic reaction occurs. 

Understanding whether food counts as PPDS is one of the biggest areas of confusion for schools. In general, food is PPDS if it is: 

In a school setting, this typically includes: 

By contrast, meals plated to order at the serving line, or food packaged only after a pupil requests it, generally aren't PPDS. Schools should still make allergen information readily available, though the Food Standards Agency recommends providing it in writing wherever possible.  

Guidance published in March 2025 went further, recommending that even non-prepacked food should have allergen information communicated in writing as well as verbally. For busy school kitchens serving hundreds of children a day, that's a meaningful shift from relying on staff memory or verbal reassurance. 

What are the revised School Food Standards? 

The School Food Standards govern the nutritional content of food served in maintained schools and academies in England. They set requirements around things like portions of fruit and vegetables and oily fish, and limits on fried food, sugary drinks, and confectionery, with the aim of ensuring school meals are healthy and balanced. 

Unlike Natasha's Law, the School Food Standards are about what is on the plate rather than how it's labelled. The government has indicated the Standards are being revised as part of wider school food reform, running alongside the expansion of free school meals to additional pupils from September 2026. (Consultation ended June 2026) 

The legislation states that a child’s healthy, balanced diet should consist of: 

Why do the School Food Standards matter for allergen management? 

The revised Food Standards focus on nutrition rather than allergens, but they’re closely connected in practice. Every time a menu is updated to introduce healthier ingredients or meet revised nutritional guidance, recipes and ingredient information need reviewing too. Therefore, the same recipe management and ingredient data that supports nutritional compliance also feeds directly into allergen labelling. 

Managing both through one central source of ingredient data helps keep menus, nutritional information, and allergen labels consistent, and reduces the risk of something being missed when a recipe changes. 

What Is Benedict's Law and what will it mean for schools?  

Benedict's Law is the newest and most significant addition to allergen management legislation within schools, It is named after Benedict Blythe, a five-year-old who died from an allergic reaction at his primary school. His parents campaigned for four years through the Benedict Blythe Foundation for statutory allergy protections in schools. Earlier this year, the Department for Education announced that the statutory guidance will come into force from September 2026, with schools expected to be compliant from that point. These measures will then be placed into primary legislation from 2027, making them a legal duty on state schools, independent schools and fee-paying special schools. (BBC) 

The law is the result of years of campaigning by allergy charities, healthcare professionals and bereaved families. Their message was clear: schools need a more consistent approach to managing food allergies, and protecting children with allergies must be treated as a whole-school responsibility. 

For the first time, schools in England will be legally required to: 

This replaces what was previously non-statutory advice. The change follows a consultation and comes with backing from organisations including the National Allergy Strategy Group, The Allergy Team, and the Natasha Allergy Research Foundation, whose Allergy School programme has already trained more than 20,000 educators. 

Benedict's Law is fundamentally about emergency preparedness and staff training but it is also relevant to focus on the allergens present in food in the first place. Training staff to respond to a reaction covers one side while preventing accidental exposure through clear, correct labelling is the other half. 

Read Part 2 to find out how these three laws work together and how your school can get prepared.