Healthy eating in Schools
Nursery, Primary and Secondary schools
All schools have to comply with food based guidelines for the school meals service. There are key food groups which apply to an average school lunch and schools have to demonstrate compliance to these guidelines. The Standards for school food in England documents foods which cannot be served and food which must be limited to improve the health of school food provision.
At the moment, by law, nurseries do not have to comply with set guidelines, however it is expected nurseries will adhere to standards and provide children with the best start in life. Nurseries would benefit from providing a balanced menu and should always have nutritionally adequate provision to substantiate their healthy food claims.
Service
- Comparisons to school meals guidelines / requirements.
- Detailed nutritional analysis of macro-nutrient (protein, fat and carbohydrate) and micro-nutrient (vitamins and minerals) content of menus, where appropriate.
- Portion size analysis and advice.
- Detailed feedback on how to improve the provision and/or how to make the menu compliant with the guidelines.
- Work with school staff and set up pupil taste panels to ensure the menu is not only compliant but recipes are attractive to children.
- Information for school website / school newsletter
- Bespoke tailored nutrition training/workshops for school staff and caterers.
Feedback from a school food provider
“As a private school we like to think we’re ahead of others in terms of our food provision. However, there is always room for improvement and we found Healthwise’s input very useful, it made us focus on new aspects of the service. A number of the recommendations were implemented immediately and the portion size information was most valuable. We are in a lucky position of building up eating profiles for many of the children. Thank you for your encouragement and support. It was great to have updates on current thinking and advice on the nutritional needs of our children”.
Cost varies depending on requirements.