Sign up now to pre-order school meals
Posted on 20 Aug 2024
With the summer holidays now over, parents/carers are being urged to sign up for the online ordering and payment system in schools across North Ayrshire.
iPayimpact is the payment method used in primary and secondary schools as a simple and secure way to pre-order school meals and pay for other school purchases.
Many parents/carers have already signed up for the iPayimpact system but some are still missing out on the advantages of the system.
For parents/carers of primary school pupils, it means food choices can be discussed with your child at home and meals can be ordered in advance, cutting down on lunchtime queues and food waste.
Secondary school pupils also need to have an ipayimpact account registered by their parent/carer but the pupils have access to an app (Fusion) where they can pre-order their own lunch as well as being able to pre-order at kiosks in schools.
Pre-ordering helps to ensure pupils get the lunchtime meal they want quickly – less time queuing and more time making the most of their lunchbreak. The app is available for all pupils whether on free school meals or for those who pay.
Two simple steps for secondary school pre-order via the app:
- Parent/carer registers and sets up an Ipayimpact account
- Parent/Carer requests an onboarding code – this is used by the pupil when downloading the app. The onboarding key is provided by your school office or by emailing onlinecashlessqueries@north-ayrshire.gov.uk
- Pupil is ready to pre-order via the app
The iPayimpact system is not only used for paying for school meals but will be used to pay for all school purchases such as trips, events, music tuition fees, hoodies and other items.
You can access this through a desktop PC, tablet, or a smart phone, enabling you to review payments, purchase history and current balance anytime, anywhere.
Andrew McClelland, North Ayrshire Head of Service for Education, said: “With the new school term upon us, now is the ideal opportunity to sign up to our online cashless payment system for school meals.
“iPayimpact has many benefits, including making the lunch service quicker and reducing queuing time for pupils. It also ensures that children and young people get the menu items of their choice.
“This in turn has benefits behind the scenes as our Facilities Management staff are aware of the quantity of meals and specific food items required resulting in more efficient use of resources and most importantly reducing food waste.
“The process of signing up is very simple and ensures parents/carers can be in greater control of what their children get for school lunch, as well as making other school payments more efficient.”
With pupils from P1 to P5 eligible for free school meals, it means more of our younger pupils have greater access to the nutritious meals being offered in our primary schools including environmentally sustainable, ethical food options, sourced by local suppliers.
This is an example of the Council’s Digital Strategy to invest in innovative, digital solutions for a better customer experience.
Pre-ordering via iPayimpact is available at primary schools – up to one week in advance. For secondary pupils, they can pre-order via the Fusion app, more info on the Fusion app website.
The main difference this school term is that parents and carers will now be able to use iPayimpact in conjunction with the new MyNAC account – this is a dedicated customer account that links iPayimpact, Council Tax, rent and a range of other services in a single, secure, account – for more information click the MyAccount tab at the top right of the Council homepage.
To take advantage of the iPayimpact facility, please visit the dedicated school meals webpage on the Council website (includes FAQs).