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Cashless catering was a new concept at the time, with most school transactions being cash-based. CRB Cunninghams installed IMPACT to anonymise free school meals and speed up service by removing cash from the point of sale.

St Margaret’s students initially used physical cards to top up their cashless accounts before mealtimes. Free meal entitlements were automatically pre-loaded, removing stigma and reducing queues at the point of sale.

Jamie Fisher, facilities and support service manager at West Lothian Council, said: “The system was viewed as futuristic and a completely new way of operating in high schools. Children got used to having cards and putting their money in the cash revaluation units.

“It removed the cash transaction for catering and school staff at the point of sale. It gave the catering service and council the confidence to adopt this cashless model across all schools in West Lothian.”

Over the past 30 years, West Lothian Council’s system has evolved to suit the needs of staff, pupils and parents. In 2021, the council upgraded to Fusion Cashless to manage all the council’s school cashless solutions in one system. Today more than 3,300 UK schools now use CRB Cunninghams’ cashless catering solutions.

Thomasina Ward, managing director at CRB Cunninghams, commented: “This milestone is a testament to how far we’ve come and our commitment to delivering our goal of ‘innovation that serves’.

“We are incredibly proud of our longstanding partnership with West Lothian Council and our cashless catering solutions' positive impact on school communities. We look forward to the next 30 years and how we can continue delivering innovative solutions to improve the school experience."