Nourish Meal Plans
Everything you need to know
FAQs
- What is a meal plan?
A meal plan is a scheme developed by the University. This enables students to purchase a prepaid uniCARD at the start of each academic year. Money will be apportioned to the card on a weekly basis for the purchase of food and non-alcoholic beverages at any outlet operated by Nourish, including Tierra Food Court, Costa Coffe, Café Libro and Eros Café. The meal plan scheme cannot be used at any other food outlets i.e. within the Students’ Union.
- When can I use the uniCARD?
The uniCARD can be used during term time between the hours of 8am and 6pm, Monday to Friday.
- Who do these terms and conditions apply to?
These terms and conditions apply to all students of the University as well as residents of Aston Student Village and the Fire Station.
- What period will the meal plan cover?
The meal plan will be purchased for the applicable academic term or year.
- How to register for a meal plan.
You can take part in the meal plan scheme in one of four ways:
- https://store.aston.ac.uk/product-catalogue/catering
- Register at Food and Drink on the Aston Campus (You will have been sent a password when you registered as a student. if you no longer have the email, please click on 'forgotten your password'.)
- Call Sonia in the catering office on 0121 204 4645
- Visit Tierra Food Court and ask to speak to one of the managers
Terms and Conditions
- Payment and Account Activation
1. Payment must be made before the start of the applicable academic term or year.
2. All payments should include your student ID number as a reference to ensure your payment is allocated to the correct uniCARD.
3. Accounts will become active once payment has been confirmed and enrolment is completed.
- Using your Student ID uniCARD to redeem the Meal Plan allowance
4. Each Monday at 00:00hrs your uniCARD will be automatically topped up with £43.85. This equates to £8.77 per day. It is your responsibility to ensure your funds are used at the end of each week. Any unspent money will be lost. This money will not be carried over to the next week or refunded to you.
5. In the event that you run out of funds before the end of the week, outstanding balances may be settled using cash, debit/credit card or TouchPay. TouchPay is a cashless payment scheme that runs alongside the meal plan scheme. Information on TouchPay can be found at nourish@aston.ac.uk. The uniCARD must be presented at the time of purchase. Failure to show your uniCARD may result in you not being able to redeem your funds.
6. In the event that a meal plan has not been purchased for a full academic year, you may top-up your uniCARD on a term-by-term basis. Any top-ups must be made prior to the start date of the new term but no later than 72hrs before. The minimum top-up permitted will be one term’s package charge and the maximum top-up will be two term’s package charge. Please contact Nourish@aston.ac.uk for more details.
- Cancellation or Termination
7. The University may terminate the meal plan scheme at any time on reasonable grounds and upon one week's prior written notice ending on the Sunday before the new week commences. In the event that this occurs, point 9 applies and you will receive a full refund of any monies unspent on the uniCARD.
8. You are entitled to cancel the meal plan scheme at any time upon two week's prior written notice to Nourish@aston.ac.uk. Please include full name, student number and email address.
9. Any refund by the University made pursuant to these terms and conditions will be communicated to you within fourteen days.
10. You will receive an email confirming your entitlement to a refund and detailing the process required to obtain this.
- Lost or Stolen uniCARDs
11. Any lost or stolen uniCARD must be reported to Nourish@aston.ac.uk as soon as possible to avoid being unable to redeem your funds.
12. In the event that your uniCARD is lost or stolen you will be responsible for obtaining a replacement via the IT department between the hours of 10am and 5pm, Monday to Friday.
13. If you are unable to obtain a replacement uniCARD on the same day, you must contact the Catering Administrator, Sonia Wittin, on 0121 204 4645
14. In the event of your uniCARD being lost or stolen, and in order to prevent any unauthorised transactions, you must ‘Hotlist’ your uniCARD online through the ‘Lost Card’ section on the TouchPay portal. This will immediately disable your uniCARD until a new one is provided to prevent any other person from using it. You will not be held liable for any subsequent purchases made using your uniCARD during this time. Once your new uniCARD is issued, the outstanding value from your old card will be transferred.
- Misuse and Fraud
15. Any misuse of your uniCARD or breach of these terms and conditions may result in your card being recalled by the University and you being withdrawn from the meal plan scheme. You will receive a full refund of any monies unspent on your uniCARD in accordance with point 10.
16. You may not loan your uniCARD to any other person.
17. You may not transfer funds from your uniCARD to another person’s uniCARD or their TouchPay account.
18. The University reserves the right to request additional ID of the account holder of the uniCARD when purchasing food and/or beverages.
19. Any attempt to defraud the meal plan scheme will be subject to disciplinary action in accordance with University policy and/or reported to the Police.
- General Information
20. The University will only deal with you in relation to your account. It is your responsibility to notify Nourish@aston.ac.uk of any changes to your account details.
21. The uniCARD will remain the property of the University.
22. The University reserves the right in its absolute discretion to refuse any application onto the meal plan scheme.
23. The University will deal with all personal data provided by you under this meal plan scheme in accordance with applicable legislation such as the Data Protection Act 1998.
24. Any complaint or concerns by you in relation to the meal plan scheme must be made in writing to the Operations Manager, Richard Thurman, on 0121 204 4231
25. The University may alter or amend these terms and conditions at any time upon prior written notice of at least one term.
26. The University accepts no responsibility and expressly excludes liability for loss, damage or theft to the uniCARD unless caused by the negligence of the University or its employees.