Request community meals

Community meals, also called meals on wheels, is a meal delivery and welfare check service for residents who have difficulty preparing food or need help to have regular, nutritious cooked meals.

Helping you stay independent

The community meals service is part of our early intervention and targeted support work which provides you with the right support to help you stay independent, safe and well in your home.

Leaving hospital

We also work with the NHS, social workers and other agencies to help you return from hospital as soon as possible.

If your family or carers are unable to arrange food to be ready for you on your hospital discharge you can leave it to us.

What the service offers

Our community meals service offers:

• nutritionally balanced, freshly cooked meals
• delivery of a hot lunch and dessert direct to your home, so there is no reheating required
• the option to order a light supper (sandwiches and snacks) and breakfast, with every lunch ordered
• a reliable delivery service 7 days a week or just on certain days
• meals on a regular basis or for a short period of time (for example if you have returned home from hospital)
• a hospital leavers’ pack containing essential everyday food
• an all year round service including weekends and bank holidays
• delivery between 11.30am and 2.30pm

Making sure you are safe and well

As part of the community meals service we also undertake welfare checks which include:

• checking your overall safety and wellbeing to make sure you are comfortable
• informing relatives or friends of any concerns about safety at home, including heating breakdowns or property hazards
• reporting incidents or accidents, which may include waiting for the emergency services to arrive
• contacting a designated person to check everything is ok if there is no answer when we deliver (at weekends, if we get no answer from you or your family, we will report it to our duty team who will follow up on our behalf)

We will not leave any meals if you are not at home to receive them.

When you use our service you agree to us calling hospitals to check if you have been admitted. We will not hold any key safe numbers unless you request it.

Food and meal options

All our nutritionally balanced meals are prepared and cooked from fresh ingredients (with some exceptions for special diets).

They are delivered direct to your home straight from our kitchen, in recyclable aluminium foil containers which keeps the food hot, so there is no reheating required.

Hot lunch

Your main meal will be a hot lunch or a jacket potato with filling of the day and a salad, delivered with the dessert of the day.

Our meals follow a 4 week menu cycle which means you can choose your favourite dishes.

You can change your menu choice by calling the office and speaking to one of the team or by letting your driver know.

You can view the full main menu.

Light supper and breakfast

With every lunch, you have the option to order light supper and breakfast at an additional charge.

This includes:

• a light supper for the same day (sandwiches, cake, yoghurt or a piece of fresh fruit)
• breakfast to eat the next day

This will be delivered with your hot lunch order.

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Cost

The cost of the meals we offer are set out below:

• Breakfast – options from £2
• Hot lunch and dessert – £6.08 (costs for specialist meals vary)
• Light supper (sandwiches and snacks) – £3.60
• Hospital leavers’ pack – the cost varies depending on the items you select for your pack

How to pay

Payment for your meals is by direct debit. When you request community meals we will agree a start date, how long you would like to receive meals and confirm the exact cost.

You will receive a form to set up the direct debit in your introductory pack. If you need help completing the form, we can help you.

How to request community meals

You can request community meals online by using the button below and logging into your South Gloucestershire Council online account.

You can also request community meals by:

• phone: 01454 865996 (Monday to Friday 8:30am to 2:30pm with voicemail service outside of these hours)

• email: meals.community@southglos.gov.uk

For online requests you will need to set up an online account with us if you do not already have one. You can ask for someone you know to act on your behalf if you need help managing your services with us. 

How to set up and manage an online account with us.

What happens next

We aim to process all new requests within 48 hours. We will call you to finalise the details.

Get advice

If you would like further advice you can discuss your needs with us by using the phone number above.

We can help with questions about our menus, any additional meals required and pausing or cancelling meals.

Quality and caring customer service

We take care to ensure a personal service is provided for you and to stay in direct contact, listening and responding to your comments and feedback to continuously improve our service.

We welcome feedback on all aspects of our community meals service by:

• phone: 01454 865996
• email: meals.community@southglos.gov.uk

Privacy notice

Learn how we collect, use and share your data in our privacy notice for the community meals service.

Terms and conditions

Before you request community meals you must accept our terms and conditions.