Cool Milk
Cool Milk is the UK's leading school milk supplier, administering and delivering free and subsidised milk to thousands of primary schools, nurseries, and early years settings across Great Britain on behalf of parents, local authorities, and the government.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersLincoln, United Kingdom
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Cool Milk does
Cool Milk is a UK-based, privately held school milk administration and distribution company established in 1998 and headquartered in Lincoln. The company operates through two registered private limited entities (Cool Milk at School Limited and Cool Milk Limited) with approximately 65 employees across the United Kingdom, and serves thousands of primary schools, nurseries, and early years settings throughout Great Britain.
Its core product is a school milk delivery service that combines fresh milk supply from a network of 400+ independent local dairies with end-to-end administrative support, including registration, ordering, payment processing, and government claim submissions under the UK school milk / Healthy Start scheme. The company handles the full operational lifecycle for settings and parents, supported by an online customer portal (customers.coolmilk.com), multilingual educational materials, free reusable beakers, and supplementary programmes including the Mighty Milk (Healthy Start) sub-brand and the Cool Milk Moments educational breaktime initiative.
Cool Milk monetises through two streams: recurring parent subscription payments for paid portions of milk (daily cost per 189ml, billed monthly) and transaction-based administration fees earned as an agent facilitating government claims for free and subsidised milk. Distribution is a hybrid model combining direct sales to 200+ local authorities and educational settings with a self-serve online registration channel for parents. The business is positioned as a regulated administrative intermediary within a UK government framework, with brand, dairy network scale, and local authority relationships serving as the principal competitive differentiators.
Cool Milk firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Cool Milk
- Legal name
- Cool Milk at School Limited and Cool Milk Limited (together known as Cool Milk)
- Website
- https://coolmilk.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1998
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Cool Milk is the UK's leading school milk supplier, administering and delivering free and subsidised milk to thousands of primary schools, nurseries, and early years settings across Great Britain on behalf of parents, local authorities, and the government.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Cool Milk industry classification
Industry- Product category
- School Milk Supply and Administration Services
- NAICS
- Fluid Milk Manufacturing (311511)
- SIC
- Dairy Products (2020)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Consumer Packaged Fluid Milk (White Milk) Processing (AFAHAAAA)
Keywords
Where Cool Milk is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Lincoln
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
Cool Milk business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Parent Milk Payments: Parents pay a daily cost per 189ml portion of milk for their children. The company handles all milk orders and payments relating to government claims.
- Government Milk Scheme Administration: Cool Milk facilitates delivery of free and subsidised milk from dairies to educational establishments and submits claims to the government for the milk received/delivered, acting as an agent within the market.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Pay per portion of school milk delivered |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Cool Milk product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Cool Milk administers the UK government's free and subsidised school milk scheme on behalf of schools, nurseries, early years settings, and parents. The company handles end-to-end delivery including registration, ordering, payment processing, government claim submissions, and logistics coordination with 400+ independent dairies to deliver fresh milk directly to educational settings' doorsteps across Great Britain.
Product overview
Cool Milk operates as the UK's leading school milk supplier, offering a unified service that combines milk delivery with administrative support. The core product is the school milk delivery service, supplemented by the Cool Milk Moments educational initiative, Mighty Milk (free/subsidised milk programme), educational materials, and an online customer portal. The company handles the complete lifecycle from registration through delivery, working with local authorities and independent dairies.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Mighty Milk: A programme providing free and subsidised milk to children through the Healthy Start initiative.
- Cool Milk Moments
Products and services
- School Milk Delivery Service End-to-end school milk delivery service that provides fresh, chilled milk directly to schools, nurseries, and early years settings across Great Britain, handling registration, ordering, payment processing, government claim submissions, and delivery logistics via a network of 400+ independent dairies.
- Mighty Milk (Healthy Start) Free and subsidised milk programme for children from eligible families, administered through the government's Healthy Start initiative to ensure access to nutritious milk for low-income and vulnerable households.
- Cool Milk Moments Structured breaktime initiative for educational settings that supports routine, nourishment, and social interaction through dedicated resources built around connection, learning, and wellbeing for children.
- Registration and Administration Services End-to-end administrative support for school milk programmes including online and paper-based registration, milk order management, parent payment processing, and government claim submissions for schools, nurseries, and early years settings.
- Customer Portal Online self-service portal allowing parents to manage their child's school milk registration, make payments by credit or debit card, and update delivery details throughout the school year.
Quantifiable outcome
- 26+ years of experience supporting nurseries and schools
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Cool Milk
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Cool Milk technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Cool Milk partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- 400+ Independent DairiescoreCool Milk works closely with trusted local suppliers across the UK, helping to keep supply chains efficient and reliable. Featured dairies include Parker Dairies (London and Essex), Wells Farm Dairy (Staffordshire), Creamline Dairies, and Dales Dairies (Yorkshire Dales).
- 200+ Local AuthoritiescoreCool Milk works in partnership with local authorities to deliver school milk programmes across the UK, assisting pre-schools, nurseries and primary schools to access free and subsidised milk through the government milk scheme.
- NDNA (National Day Nurseries Association)minorMike Ferrand, Managing Director, was featured in NDNA's Ask the Expert section, sharing insights on school milk in early childhood development.
- Athletes in SchoolsminorCollaboration for Olympic athlete visits to schools that win Cool Milk competitions, bringing sports personalities to celebrate with children.
- NSPCCminorCool Milk works with NSPCC as part of their wider support for child welfare alongside educational and oral health partnerships.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights4 records
Cool Milk competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Lactalis UK: Lactalis UK operates fluid milk and dairy production for retail and foodservice customers across Britain. It is comparable to Cool Milk as a competing UK fluid milk supplier serving institutional customers including schools.
- Danone UK: Danone UK manufactures and distributes dairy products (yogurts, milks, dairy drinks) for retail and institutional customers. It overlaps with Cool Milk in supplying dairy products to UK schools and public-sector institutions.
- Freshways: Freshways is a UK-based dairy company specialising in fluid milk distribution to retail and foodservice, including schools. It is a direct peer in that it supplies fresh milk to UK educational settings through a similar distribution model.
- Saputo Dairy UK: Saputo Dairy UK (formerly Dairy Crest) is a major UK fluid milk and dairy products manufacturer supplying schools, retail, and foodservice. It is comparable to Cool Milk as a UK fluid milk supplier with school and institutional channels.
- Müller Milk & Ingredients: Müller is a major UK fluid milk and dairy ingredients producer with nationwide distribution, including into education and institutional channels. It is comparable to Cool Milk as a UK-wide fluid milk supplier competing for the same institutional customers.
- Arla Foods UK: Arla Foods is one of the largest dairy companies in the UK and a major supplier of fluid milk, including to schools and education channels. It is directly comparable to Cool Milk as both operate in UK fluid milk distribution and could compete for school milk contracts.
Others
- Nestlé UK: Nestlé UK is a broad-based food and beverage manufacturer including dairy-based beverages, milks, and nutrition products sold via retail and institutional channels. It is an adjacent peer as a large dairy-adjacent supplier with presence in UK school and nutrition markets.
Broad incumbents
- Elior UK: Elior UK is a contract catering company serving schools, workplaces, and public-sector clients across the UK. It is comparable to Cool Milk as a broader institutional food service provider active in the same education segment.
- Sodexo UK & Ireland: Sodexo is a global contract foodservice and facilities provider with significant presence in UK schools and public-sector catering. It overlaps with Cool Milk in serving institutional customers, including in education, and could integrate dairy provision into managed services.
- Compass Group UK & Ireland: Compass Group is a major contract foodservice provider operating broadly across UK schools, workplaces, and healthcare. It is comparable to Cool Milk as a large incumbent institutional food and beverage supplier that could bundle milk provision into broader contracts.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Cool Milk social profiles
Digital presenceCool Milk compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance4 records
Cool Milk financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Cool Milk leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Cool Milk funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Cool Milk M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Cool Milk
What does Cool Milk do?
Cool Milk administers the UK government's free and subsidised school milk scheme on behalf of schools, nurseries, early years settings, and parents. The company handles end-to-end delivery including registration, ordering, payment processing, government claim submissions, and logistics coordination with 400+ independent dairies to deliver fresh milk directly to educational settings' doorsteps across Great Britain.
Is Cool Milk a public or private company?
Cool Milk is a private company. It is classified as management employee owned and is currently operating.
When was Cool Milk founded?
Cool Milk was founded in 1998. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Cool Milk based?
Cool Milk is headquartered in Lincoln, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does Cool Milk make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Parent Milk Payments are the primary driver. The others are government Milk Scheme Administration.
Who are Cool Milk's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Lactalis UK, Danone UK, Freshways, Saputo Dairy UK, Müller Milk & Ingredients and Arla Foods UK. Nestlé UK is listed as an others. Broad incumbents are Elior UK, Sodexo UK & Ireland and Compass Group UK & Ireland.
Does Cool Milk have an API?
No public API is recorded for Cool Milk.
What industry is Cool Milk in?
Cool Milk's product category is School Milk Supply and Administration Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFAHAAAA, Consumer Packaged Fluid Milk (White Milk) Processing. Its NAICS code is 311511 and its SIC code is 2020.