Tag Archives: School meals

Another successful national school meals week in Warwickshire Schools

Promoting Healthy Eating as part of a whole school approach with different activities each day, National School Meals Week  7 – 11 November 2011 enabled schoolchildren across Warwickshire to have fun and find out interesting facts whilst eating a hot school lunch.

On Monday for Get Eating many schools invited parents, grandparents, friends and VIP guests to join them for lunch, aiming to create Britain’s Biggest School Lunch. Other schools picked a cultural theme for Get Travelling on Tuesday or indulged their artistic side for Get Creative on Wednesday.

Warwickshire County Council Caterers supplied two themed menus for the end of the week’s activities; Get 5-a-Day on Thursday and a 1940’s themed school lunch on Friday for Remembrance Day (pictured right - a pupil at St Mary’s Roman Catholic Primary School, Southam is served wartime themed lunch.)

Lindsay Higgins Operations Manager – Warwickshire County Caterers said: “Lots of children who don’t normally choose a hot lunch had their first school meal during this week and feedback we have received has been fantastic.”

Warwickshire school dinners are top nosh

Warwickshire County Caterers have been awarded the prestigious Soil Association’s Food for Life Bronze Catering Mark for their primary school lunch menu.

To celebrate this achievement and demonstrate how they met the award criteria they will be cooking up a special roast dinner on Wednesday 12 October.

On the menu will be roast British pork or cheesy courgette sausage with roast potatoes and local cabbage and carrots. For dessert children will be served apple and cinnamon brown betty with custard.

The Food for Life Catering Mark is a unique way to gain independent endorsement for serving fresh food you can trust. It’s a guarantee from the Soil Association that what’s on your menu is freshly prepared, additive free and with high regard for animal welfare. It also reflects wider food education opportunities offered in schools.

In short the award means the caterers are dishing up fresh food parents can trust to pupils at most primary schools and some secondary schools throughout the county.

Rachel Brook, Development Manager for Warwickshire County Caterers said: “We are really pleased to receive this award which offers reassurance to schools and parents that our meals are healthy and nutritious.

“We will continue to work on sourcing the best ingredients for our menus and providing more information to our customers – we’re already using organic and fair-trade produce so are well placed to meet the criteria for the silver Food for Life award next year.”

School chefs from flagship schools Newdigate Primary School, Clifton on Dunsmore and Bidford on Avon will collect the award at a special ceremony hosted at Garden Organic, Ryton on 15 November.

Warwickshire County Caterers provide a meal service in the majority of the County’s Primary schools and some secondary schools. Last year staff dished up nearly 3,000,000 meals to their young customers. For more information please visit the Warwickshire County Council school meals website www.warwickshire.gov.uk/schoolmeals

More about the Soil Association’s Food for Life Programme can be found online at www.foodforlife.org.uk

Cooking up a treat in schools

Warwickshire County Caterers have been awarded the prestigious Soil Association’s Food for Life Bronze Catering Mark for their Primary School lunch menu.

The Food for Life Catering Mark is a unique way to gain independent endorsement for serving fresh food you can trust. It’s a guarantee from the Soil Association that what’s on your menu is:

  • Freshly prepared
  • Free from undesirable additives
  • Better for animal welfare

In short it is fresh food you can trust – something everyone is asking for.

Warwickshire County Caterers provide a meal service in the majority of the County’s Primary schools and last year staff dished up nearly 3,000,000 meals to their young customers. There is further information on the Warwickshire school meals website and at www.foodforlife.org.uk

Award for growing pupils

Newdigate Primary School and Nursery has been awarded the Food for Life Partnership Bronze Award for its healthy and climate-friendly food culture. [flickr id="5877314596" thumbnail="thumbnail" overlay="true" size="small" group="" align="right"]

The Bedworth school is working with the Food for Life Partnership to transform the school’s food culture, and that of its local community, by reconnecting the children with climate-friendly, healthy and real food.

As part of the bronze award scheme, Newdigate serves seasonal school meals, 75% of which are freshly prepared by experienced school cook, Tracey Marshall of Warwickshire County Council’s Caterers.

The school also gives every pupil the opportunity to visit a farm, cook and participate in food growing activities during his or her time at school, and pupils and parents are involved in making improvements to the school’s menu and dining experience.

Over the last 18 months staff, governors and volunteers from the local community have built a number of raised beds where pupils can grow a variety of fruit and vegetables.

A new dedicated cooking classroom was opened in April this year, enabling whole classes to learn different skills and enjoy cooking together. More recently, an eco-friendly greenhouse made from recycled plastic bottles has been erected in the school grounds.

Siobhan Marrow, Head teacher, said: “This is a fantastic achievement for all our pupils, staff and the local community. Everyone has been inspired to develop our school as a centre that leads on transforming food culture. As a Food for Life Flagship School, we see this as the first step on our journey and we are already working hard to achieve our Silver and Gold awards. Our school really does provide the opportunities for our young people to develop the skills they need for life.”

Tracey Marshal, school cook, added: “It is great that we have achieved our Bronze Food for Life status. It’s fantastic to be able to use fresh herbs in some dishes and serve fresh vegetables at lunch time; the children are more willing to try the vegetables that they have grown, even the brussel sprouts!”

Kerry Wright, Deputy head/Year 5 teacher, said: “We definitely have the growing bug now, always looking for parts of the school to develop into growing areas and, now with our recycled bottle green-house being built, it opens up even more opportunity to grow from seed.

“With all the children involved (from Nursery to year 6) in the planting, growing, harvesting, cooking and the most enjoyable part – eating the produce; they have become much more aware of where food comes from. It is now our second year of growing and with the help of the children and local community it can only go from strength to strength.”

Lorrie Smallwood, Year 4 teacher, said: “We have had the privilege of being linked with Feldon Forest Organic Farm in Rugby where the farmer, George Browning, has been a great host. A group of 15 children representing classes from Reception to year 6 have visited the farm as “Farm Link Ambassadors”, learning about the benefits of organic farming. Farmer Browning has also introduced the children to the excitement of local flora and fauna, and how these change and act throughout the seasons.  It is an invaluable experience for our children.”

Pat Howard, office manager, Cooking Club teacher, said: “Since the opening of our fantastic cooking room, the enthusiasm for cooking has grown immensely. Our after-school cooking clubs have had waiting lists for places, especially from the boys. The junior cooked have produced both sweet and savoury items and learnt lots of new techniques, for example kneading, peeling, chopping, creaming methods.”