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TURNING THE TABLES: TRANSFORMING SCHOOL FOOD MINIMUM STANDARDS FOR SCHOOL MEALS
03 October 2005
The report "Turning the Tables: Transforming School Food" by the independent School Meals Review Panel is published today.
Education Secretary Ruth Kelly welcomed the publication of the report which recommends redesigning the nation's school menus to set new minimum standards for food in schools and ensuring pupils get essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals. There will now be a 13-week consultation period.
Alongside the publication of the report, the Government launched a national audit of school food provision in order to assess the progress that is already being made by local authorities and schools. The national audit, which will begin next week, will cover issues such as how much is being spent on school meals ingredients , how they are provided, whether children get hot or cold meals and the percentage of pupils currently buying school meals.
The Government has asked the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority to consider how to put a greater emphasis on teaching pupils practical cooking skills in secondary schools for 11 to 14 year olds. Alongside giving children better meals, we want to ensure that they learn about diet, nutrition, food safety & hygiene, practical food preparation and cooking. Preparing and cooking food is a key skill that will benefit them as they move into adulthood and independence. The Government's aim is to reverse two decades of neglect of school meals. It firmly supports the recommendations on setting tough minimum food-based standards as mandatory for school lunches by September 2006. As outlined last week, this will effectively ban low quality foods high in fat, salt and sugar, reformed or reconstituted foods made from ‘meat slurry,’ and similar standards would ban chocolate, crisps, and sugary fizzy drinks from vending machines. The Government also supports recommendations for the introduction of even more stringent nutrient-based standards at the same time, stipulating the essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals required for school meals in primary schools by no later than 2008 and secondary schools by no later than 2009.
In addition to record levels of schools funding, the Government is investing £220 million over three years to help schools and local education authorities transform school meals through training and increased hours for cooks, equipment and a minimum spend on ingredients - 50p at primary schools, 60p at secondary schools. Some £30m for this year has already been allocated to local authorities - with a further £100m over the following two years. £30m will be granted direct to schools as part of their Standards Fund allocations in October, with a further £60m over the following two years. New or upgraded school kitchen facilities where fresh produce can be prepared and served will be made a priority as Government rebuilds and refurbishes every secondary school through its Building Schools for the Future programme. £5.5bn is being spent in 2005-06 rising to £6.3bn in 2007-08 to improve school buildings. An extra £650 million capital for primary schools was announced in the last Spending Review for 2008-09 and 2009-10.Ruth Kelly said:“Government - working in partnership with schools, local authorities and parents - has a golden opportunity to make a real difference to a service which has suffered from decades of neglect. The scale of the challenge is huge, but we must act now to reverse the decline. Schools tell me they are making changes now, and we know that local authorities are already putting serious plans in place to use our extra funding to improve their schools' food.
"Because school meal provision varies throughout the country, we need to know where targeted support is most needed. So we will also be launching a national audit to give us a clearer picture of what progress is already being made.
“The new minimum standards will be the bedrock of the drive towards better food in schools. I am keen to make real changes quickly which is why I agree with the Panel’s recommendation that the food-based standards should be introduced in all schools by September 2006. And while I accept the Panel’s view that nutrient-based standards should be phased in over time, the proposed timescales of 2008 and 2009 should be seen as the deadline for the last schools to meet the standards, not as a target date for the majority.“We have already made clear our commitment to transform school food. We are investing £220 million over the next three years to improve school meal ingredients and better train and value school catering staff, and we will place a priority on school kitchens through our multi-billon pound school rebuilding and refurbishment programmes.
” I welcome the School Meals Review Panel recommendations that all children should be taught food preparation and practical cooking skills in school in the context of healthy eating. Practical food education is important for all children and the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority are looking at the role of food education in the curriculum as part of their Key Stage 3 review and I look forward to recieving their recommendations. "
Suzi Leather, Chair of the School Meals Review Panel said:“Not since the creation of the welfare state has there been such a groundswell of public support for improvement of school meals. School meals are an essential public service, no less important today than when they were introduced at the beginning of the last century.”All school food should be good food. School meals should be an important source of nutrition for children, especially those from low income households. By redressing the current imbalance in children’s' diets, schools can contribute towards a reduction in childhood obesity and tooth decay and, in the longer term, reduce the likelihood of our children suffering from chronic diseases later in life. “The standards we have recommended will establish a world class school meals service. They will have very considerable health, educational and social benefits and for many children they will be a nutritional safety net. They consider children's needs across a broad spectrum and address not only nutritional requirements but also the wider issues of what children learn about food: where it comes from, how it is produced and how to cook food for themselves and their own families in the future."Editor's Notes
This press notice relates to 'England'
1. The School Meals Review Panel is made up of expert dietitians and nutritionists; school headteachers, governors and support staff; and catering and industry professionals. Turning the Tables: Transforming School Food is published on the Department for Education and Skills website at http://www.dcsf.gov.uk/consultations . The report includes detailed summaries of the new food- and nutrient-based standards as well as sample menus.
2. The School Food Trust is expected to launch in November to support schools in making the transformation to healthy meals, giving independent support and advice to schools and parents. Alongside this, a dedicated ‘toolkit’ will enable parents to work with schools and the School Food Trust to improve the quality of their child’s school meal. 3. New qualifications and training are being developed for school caterers. A new VRQ has already been accredited by the QCA and is available through a number of examining bodies (e.g. City & Guilds, ASET) to help school cooks understanding of what makes a healthy meal, and importantly, how to market them to encourage young people to eat them.4. The new Ofsted inspection framework will expect schools to present evidence to Ofsted about their general approach to food and healthy eating as well as more specifically about the standard of school lunches. Ofsted will always comment on the school's success in promoting healthy eating and drinking and will report on any issues which arise out of the self assessment or as a result of their inspection report.
5. A national survey of school meal provision will be carried out between 10 October and 24 October, with a view to publishing the results in early November.
6. The The key findings of the report, on which the Government will now seek views in consultation with schools, local authorities, catering organisations and food manufacturers, include -• tough minimum food-based standards implemented for school lunches by September 2006, stipulating not less than two portions of fruit and vegetables per child per day; oily fish on a regular basis; easy access to fresh drinking water; and importantly, controlling children’s choices to ensure that they cannot opt out of healthy food; • stringent nutrient-based standards, based on the Caroline Walker Trust guidelines, stipulating the essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals required for school meals in primary schools by no later than 2008 and secondary schools by no later than 2009.• where they are not already, all schools should work towards serving hot meals, cooked on-site, from fresh and seasonal ingredients; with produce supplied by local farmers and suppliers where possible;• schools and caterers should train all catering staff and supervisors to ensure they are able to support pupils in making healthy choices; and ensure that they are central to a ‘whole school’ approach on healthy eating;• schools should consider whole-school food policies that account for the impact of packed lunches and other food brought into school, with DfES consultation inviting views on advice to parents on healthy lunchboxes or even imposing restrictions on pupils leaving school at lunch time; • prioritisation of refurbishment or rebuilding of school kitchens under schools capital programmes including ‘Building Schools for the Future’; and ensuring that current Private Finance Initiative (PFI) contracts do not impose barriers to the improvement of school food;• schools should audit their food service and curriculum and develop a whole-school food and nutrition policy, to be made available to parents and carers; this should include teaching children practical cooking skills in the context of healthy eating, and, through links with local producers, improved knowledge of growing and producing food;• schools should aim for complete take-up of free school meal entitlement; and aim for a 10% increase in overall take-up within the three year transition period.Contact Details
Public Enquiries 0870 000 2288, info@dcsf.gsi.gov.uk
Press Notice 2005/0108
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