The ordinance for the Menjar a Casa service of Penyagolosa has been definitively approved

The Mancomunitat de Penyagolosa-Pobles del Nord has finalized the modification of the ordinance regulating the “Menjar a Casa” (Meals at Home) home delivery service, as no claims were filed during the public exhibition period. The plenary agreement is published in the Official Gazette of the Province of Castellón no. 115, dated September 24, 2026, with the official reference 04137-2026-U. The regulation will enter into force fifteen days after its full publication in the provincial gazette.

Legal framework and scope of the service

The approval is carried out in compliance with article 70.2 of Law 7/1985, of April 2, regulating the Bases of the Local Regime, and the ordinance is further subject to Law 3/2019, of February 18, on the Inclusive Social Services System of the Valencian Community. The text aims to promote the ability of elderly people to remain in their own homes and guarantee a good quality of life.

The program consists of the daily delivery of menus to the user’s home from Monday to Friday, except for national and regional holidays, throughout the period in which the users are registered. The announcement was signed in Atzeneta del Maestrat on September 18, 2026, by the president, Jordi Alcon Molina.

Requirements and access scoring

The service may be requested by those who have the autonomy to prepare and ingest food, or who provide a commitment from family members or the local entity to take responsibility for that task, and who prove the need through favorable social and medical reports. Additionally, they must meet one of these age requirements:

• Be 65 years of age or older.
• Be 60 years of age or older, or be over 18 years old with a disability certificate, provided they live with a beneficiary over 65 years old and are in a state of dependency.
• Extraordinary case of someone under 65 years old, accredited by the social report of the social worker from the Basic Primary Care Social Services Team of the Mancomunitat.

Selection is decided by the score of the scale in Annex I, which evaluates indicators from the medical report (mobility, dressing, hygiene, nutrition, visual limitation, space-time orientation, and memory disorders) and the social report (cohabitation unit, average monthly pension, age, disability certificate, and other circumstances). Those who do not achieve beneficiary status will be placed on a waiting list ordered by score, not by the order of application arrival.

Rights, duties, and operation

The text recognizes non-discriminatory access to the program, dignified treatment, professional secrecy regarding socio-sanitary history, the possibility of submitting proposals for improvement, knowledge of the price and its variations, the right to voluntarily cease the service, and the ability to file complaints via claim forms. Duties include knowing and complying with the rules of use, respecting the facilities and means of the service, reporting anomalies, and any other legal obligation or those collected in the ordinance.

Regarding its operation:

• Delivery takes place from 12:00 to 14:30 hours, carried out by municipal staff, and the Mancomunitat previously informs each user of the approximate time.
• Menus include a first course, second course, and dessert, with healthy (N), diabetic (A), and easy-to-chew (M) diets, adapted according to medical indication.
• The cost is financed by the Diputació de Castelló, the Mancomunitat and, if applicable, the contribution of the beneficiary; the price is set by the governing team.
• Temporary or definitive suspension must be communicated ten days in advance.

Applications, places, and termination

The application period is open all year round and the request is formalized in the general registry of the Mancomunitat, either in person or electronically, managed through the Equip de Serveis Socials d’Atenció Primària Bàsica. The number of places for the current year is determined by the program’s budgetary availability, including subsidies from other administrations, and may be expanded annually according to the criteria of the governing team and social services.

Causes for denial include failing to meet the required requirements, documentary falsehood, or the concealment of data. The benefit is terminated upon the death of the beneficiary, absence from the home for more than three months without prior communication, waiver, disappearance of the requirements, and any other serious cause legally provided for. An administrative appeal may be filed against the agreement before the Sala de lo Contencioso-Administrativo del Tribunal Superior de Justícia de la Comunitat Valenciana, based in Valencia, within two months from the day following the publication of the announcement.

The entry into force of the ordinance provides a stable and regulated framework for an essential service for the elderly in the member municipalities, who from now on will have objective access criteria, written recognized rights, and clear rules of operation and financing.

Source: Butlletí Oficial de la Província de Castelló, no. 115 of September 24, 2026, Administració Local / Administración Local (Mancomunitats), official reference: 04137-2026-U.