THE DAYS WHEN parents sent their children to school clutching cash to pay for their lunch have long gone – with the modern schoolchild having had their dinner money paid online.
This was revealed by Moray Council yesterday when the revealed the success of their simple to use cashless catering system.
The system has brought about a 38% month-to-month increase in both the volume and value of payments made online when compared to the same period in 2015.
Using the cashless system, students can purchase food and drink without carrying cash around – instead they pay using their Young Scot entitlement card. The cards are pre-loaded with funds using the Moray Council e-Shop.
Because of the system parents now have complete transparency on where their children are spending their dinner money – ensuring that it is being used correctly for healthy food provided by their school.
A parent now using the system said that paying online was a convenient and simple process, adding: “I can top-up at anytime, anywhere, usually on my phone when I’m walking to work.
“Credit reaches my daughter’s card on the same day as long as it’s paid before 9.10am. It’s a relief to know that good, balanced meal options are available at school every day. It’s just one less thing for me to worry about.”
Susan May, who is the officer responsible for school catering at Moray Council, said: “We pride ourselves on providing freshly prepared, nutritious meal choices for students, and having a seamless process for their parents and guardians to pay for them works for everyone.”
Cashless catering is one of a number of services provided online by the local authority – all part of their ‘Moray Connected’ project, which aims to provide as much online facilities as possible to help people manage council services in a simple, safe and time-convenient manner.