School FoodAll You Need To Know

Date: 7th October 2014Leeds Healthy Schools and Wellbeing Service

Introductions

Helen McLeod –Registered Dietitian, Schools Food Advisor.

Helen.McLeod@leeds.gov.uk 07958186156

Siobhan O’Mahony, Registered Public Health Nutritionist, School Food Advisor

Siobhan.O’Mahony@leeds.gov.uk 07891275296

Introductions from delegates ….

House keeping

• Toilets• Fire procedures• Mobile phones• Ask questions throughout• Confidentiality• Delegate packs• Course resources available online at:

http://www.schoolwellbeing.co.uk/pages/school-food-all-you-need-to-know-7th-october

Plan of the day• School Food Plan• Improving School Meals & Increasing Uptake• School Food Standards• BREAK• Engaging & Motivating pupils and parents • Curriculum• Work well with catering staff• Case studies• LUNCH• Policies• Monitoring all aspects of school food culture• Identify resources• Summary and finish – 3.30pm• Implementing Universal Free School Meals

The Healthy Schools and Wellbeing Team

• Resource and information website: www.schoolwellbeing.co.uk

• Each school has unique log in details• Must have basic or full SLA to access resources• Book on to training

Before we begin …

1. Use the ‘school food action plan’

Aim of the session

What does the group want to get out of the day?

What are you needs?

You said … “School Food Plan, curriculum, policy, statutory requirements, school food standards, motivating and engaging pupils”

The School Food Planmain outcomes

Cooking in the Curriculum

Universal Infant Free School Meals

New School Food Standards

www.schoolfoodplan.com

Headteacher checklist

• The plan gives head teachers a list of actions and focus areas

• This may give you more support and time from senior leadership

• The can be used as a starting point to ensure you are working towards the School Food Plan

Activity 1

Headteacher Checklist

• Has your Headteacher seen this?

– What are you currently doing well

– What could you be doing better

– What are you not doing

ACTIVITY 1

Ofsted

New subsidiary guidance :

Inspectors should consider the food on offer at the school and atmosphere of the school canteen. They should:

•consider how lunch time and the dining space contribute to good behaviour and the culture in the school, including by spending time in the lunch hall, and

•ask school leaders how they help to ensure a healthy lifestyle for their children and, specifically, whether their dietary needs have been considered. 

National Monitoring

What gets monitored gets done:– Take-up of school meals – Nutritional quality of the food (number of schools meeting the new

standards) – Proportion of sixteen year olds who can cook a repertoire of savoury

dishes – Morale of the workforce – Proportion of schools with a quality award (for example the Food for Life

Partnership award or the Children’s Food Trust award)

•Healthy Schools Programme: will also ask schools for evidence of compliance

School Meals

What are YOUR current issues?

ACTIVITY 2

School Meal Uptake in Leeds Primary Schools 2012-2013

□Average Primary School Meal Uptake

Baseline Data

• School Food Plan Action- Statutory requirement from September 2014

• School Meal Tracker• What does the future hold?

• Little London video

UIFSM

• Packed Lunches • Parent taster and trust • Food, play, learning delivered and supported

from the top• Continued food education and cooking in the

curriculum• Continued school caterer support

Long term success

Getting Started•How do I know what needs to be improved?

• Surveys, questionnaires, information gathering, head teachers checklist. school food ambassadors

•Have we agreed what ‘good’ looks like and how we will achieve this together?

• Hear from other schools, arrange visits

Strategies and resources to improve school meals and increase uptake

1. Clear expectations on all

stakeholders.

2. Clear performance

measures.

3. Review mechanism

Contract Management• Leadership Team

• Catering Provider

• Pupils

• Lunchtime Staff

• Meal take up

• Availability of choice

• Pupil satisfaction

• Delivery of Training

• Senior member

• Who will review?

• How?

• When?

Strategies to improve school meals

1. Engaging Pupils

2. Lunch time supervisory staff

3. Engaging Parents

4. Whole School Culture

5. Ongoing Messages & Marketing

ACTIVITY 3

The NEW food standards

• Will be compulsory for all schools – including most academies*

• More streamline and clear • No nutrient standards• Allow more flexibility & creativity for caters/cooks• What will they look like … see poster • Available NOW– compulsory from January 2015

Food Groups

• Poster• Checklist• Guidance booklet• Portion guidance• Photos, recipes and menus• … and much more

Available at: www.schoolfoodplan.com/standards/

Resources available:

• “Lower fat milk or lactose-reduced milk must be available for drinking at least once per day, during school hours for pupils who want to purchase it.”

School Milk

The Healthy School Lunch Game

Yes, no or sometimes!?

ACTIVITY 3

What other resources are available for improving school meals?

• www.schoolwellbeing.co.uk • “ A Guide to Making the Best of School Meal Provision”• School Food Ambassador Training• Free School Meals- Frontline practitioner• Free School Meal Toolkit• Surveys and Questionnaires

– “School Food Survey”

• Governors information from DfE

Case study of improving meals…

• Harehills Primary Video• BEFORE:

– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YPpvBWCQ7zM&feature=youtu.be

• AFTER:– https://www.youtube.com/watch?

v=DzPhgTmaWGw&feature=youtu.be

Revolutionising the way pupils order their school meals •Developed a pre-ordering system to be used on smart phones, PC’s the evening or morning before school•Staff and pupil online whole school food survey•New team of 16 School Food Ambassadors to provide ongoing monitoring and feedback

Abbey Grange

Break time …

This section focusses on engaging and motivating to create lasting healthy relationships with food and stimulate behaviour change.

Whole School Approach

Engage and Motivate: Healthy Eating

• What is healthy eating?

Engage and Motivate: Healthy Eating

Engage and Motivate: Healthy Eating

• Current issues of lack of motivation & engagement in schools

• Do your pupils want to eat healthy food

• Do they understand why?

What are the challenges in your school?

The challenges to healthy eating

Taste preferences

Fast food advertising

Age, gender,

food allergies

Family traditions, peer pressure

Overcoming Challenges

ACTIVITY 4

Engage and Motivate: Healthy Eating

• Examples of how to engage– Lessons, assemblies– Games– Mentoring/role modelling– Rewards– Ownership

Marketing and promoting healthy choices school meals

• Assemblies• Newsletters• Digital PR = Twitter• Notice boards• School website• Posters

• Dining Environmeny• Menu boards outside

dining room • Communication• Write to parent about

changes • Inform children centre

Working with Caterers to support a whole school approach

• What is ‘good’ … contract management• Can deliver aspects of the curriculum• Valued member of the school• Interact with pupils• Engaging in school meals & cooking• Leeds Catering wiling to support• Cooks attended cooking course.

Working with Caterers

• Examples of how it works.• Bush tucker trials• Parents evenings• School council meetings• Staff social occasions • Staff meetings• Language barriers?

Action Plan

• Use your school food action plan!• Action plan for improving meals and increasing

motivation• A signed and agreed action plan ensure things

happen! • Motivates long and short term change

3 key areas …

1.Healthy eating

2.Cooking

3.Where food comes from

The curriculum and the school food plan

• What are the new statutory requirements?– National Curriculum– Core Competencies– Progression

• How should this be monitored

Health, Nutrition & Cooking

Subject Key stage 1 Key stage 2 Key Stage 3

D&T- Cooking & Nutrition

 Use the basic principles of a healthy and varied diet to prepare dishes  Understand and apply the basic principles of a healthy and varied diet

 Understand and apply the principles of a healthy and varied diet Prepare and cook a variety of predominantly savoury dishes using a range of cooking techniques Understand seasonality, and know where and how a variety of ingredients are grown, reared, caught and processed.

 Understand and apply the principles of nutrition and health Cook a repertoire of predominantly savoury dishes so that they are able to feed themselves and others a healthy and varied diet Become competent in a range of cooking techniques [for example, selecting and preparing ingredients; using utensils and electrical equipment; applying heat in different ways; using awareness of taste, texture and smell to decide how to season dishes and combine ingredients; adapting and using their own recipes] 

Understand the source, seasonality and characteristics of a broad range of ingredients 

Science  Year 2Find out about the basic needs of animals including humans for survival (water, food and air) Describe the importance for humans of exercise, eating the right amounts of different types of foods and hygiene. 

 Year 3Identify that animals, including humans, need the right types and amounts of nutrition, and that they cannot make their own food; they get nutrition from whatever they eat Year 4Describe the simple functions of the basic parts of the digestive system in humansIdentify the different types of teeth in humans and their simple functions Year 6Recognise the impact of diet, exercise, drugs and lifestyle on the way their bodies functionDescribe the ways in which nutrients and water are transported within animals including humans. 

Nutrition and digestion content of a healthy human diet: carbohydrates, lipids (fats and oils), proteins, vitamins, minerals, dietary fibre and water, and why each is needed Calculations of energy requirements in a healthy daily diet  The consequences of imbalances in the diet, including obesity, starvation and deficiency diseases  

PSHE (non-statutory guidance)

 What constitutes a healthy lifestyle including the benefits of physical activity, rest, healthy eating and dental health 

 To recognise opportunities to make their own choices about food, what might influence their choices and the benefits of eating a balanced diet

 

• Supported by British Nutrition Foundation– Aim Help Children and young people to develop the

skills and knowledge to make and implement healthy food choices.

– Food competences have been set out as a framework of core skills

– Essential building blocks to a consistent set of food skills and knowledge.

• 5 main themes…

Curriculum:Core Competencies Health, Nutrition & Cooking

• What is healthy eating?

Healthy Eating in the Curriculum

Eating habits

General knowledge of healthy eating

5 a day

Making healthy choices

Food budgeting skills

Manage weight

Reading food labels

Cooking skills

The eatwell plate

Energy balance

Dining skills e.g. social aspects of eating

Cultural diets

Healthy snacking

What could children learn about food and eating?

Food and healthy eating

Building links across the curriculum

ACTIVITY 5

Resources

• Schemes of Work & Lesson Plan

• Food a fact of Life– http://www.foodafactoflife.org.uk/

• Change 4 life– http://www.nhs.uk/change4life/Pages/schools-

partners.aspx– Register

• New Subject Content:

“As part of their work with food, pupils should be taught how to cook and apply the principles of nutrition and

healthy eating. Instilling a love of cooking in pupils will also open a door to one of the great expressions of

human creativity. Learning how to cook is a crucial life skill that enables pupils to feed themselves and others

affordably and well, now and in later life”

Curriculum:Cooking & Nutrition (D&T)

D&T Progression Framework

• Focus on …• More practical work than some schools are currently doing• No statutory number of hours, although there is an

expectation that this will be regular, probably every week• Greater focus on healthier recipes, supporting better food

choices and less paper based designing or research activities.

• Dishes appropriate to their culture and values, that meet nutritional guidelines and help them to feed themselves within a budget and are useful to them now and in later life.

Cooking in the D&T Curriculum

• Health & Wellbeing Training – Cooking in the Curriculum, 28th November 2014– http://www.schoolwellbeing.co.uk/training_courses/62

• Schemes of Work & Lesson Plan• Focus on food website

– http://www.focusonfood.org/

Resources for Cooking in the Curriculum

• It is important to teach children the whole process and journey from farm to fork

• All food comes from plant or animal sources• Use food grown in school in cooking activities • Promote sustainability

Where does food come from?

• Resources: – Food a fact of life:

www.foodafactoflife.org.uk/section.aspx?t=0&siteId=14&sectionId=63

– Food for Life Partnership & Farm Visits: http://www.foodforlife.org.uk/school-awards/what-can-you-do/visit-a-farm

– Voucher Schemes e.g. Morrisons Let’s Grow: https://your.morrisons.com/Kids-and-Baby/LetsGrow/

Links with growing and farming

Summary & Action Plan

Lunch break…

• What should be covered as part of a food policy?– Pen relay!

Food policy

ACTIVITY 5

• Resources available– How to guide– Food policy template– Checklist– Example primary and secondary policies– School food action plan template

Food policy

Why is a food policy important?

Coordinated approach

Equality of access and participation

for all

Reinforces messages relating to food and drink

Engages the whole school community

Establishes effective working partnerships

Ensures greater sustainability through

planned action

Communicates school’s shared

vision, ethos and values

OFSTED Food Policy

Healthy Schools status

• Your values and vision for food culture• Food provision• Food brought in from home – food consumption• Food education e.g. the curriculum• Current legislation, statutory requirements • All other food related activities e.g. growing, after

school clubs, events etc.

What should be included?

See food policy checklist

Whole School Day

All food served and eaten on school premises: •Breakfast clubs and early morning provision•Tuck shops and snack policies•Lunchtimes •After school clubs•Special events and occasions

• Compare your policy to the checklist• Tick areas you already cover• Which areas are missing• Are any areas not applicable to you?

Food policy review

ACTIVITY 6

• Should schools still give sweets/unhealthy food as an occasional reward and at school discos/events?

The BIG debate …

ACTIVITY 7

YES vs. NO

Rewards in school

• Rewards are important for positive reinforcement• Should food rewards be given for good behaviour or

achievement in schools?– Does it support healthy eating education being taught in the

school environment?– Is it inclusive for all pupils?– It may encourage over consumption of foods high in added

sugar and fat.– Does it teach children & young people to recognise hunger

signals?– Can it make less healthy food seem more appealing?

Ideas for non-food rewards

• Stickers, stationary, team points, tokens• Praise, recognition, special mentions• Sit by friends• Watch a video• Help the teacher lead the class• Have extra art time• Enjoy class outdoors, read outdoors, eat lunch outdoors with

the class• Listen to music while working• Dance to their favourite music in the classroom• Get “free choice” time at the end of the day

Other occasions and events in school

• Should be a decision to be made by the school council and governing body

• As a Healthy School, school’s should consider a whole school approach to healthy eating and adopt a consistent approach to enforcing the standards.

• Provide a balance - this should be included as part of your whole school food policy

How to develop or review your food policy

• Step 1: Set up a working group• Step 2: Gather information • Step 3: Draft your food policy• Step 4: Consult on your draft policy• Step 5: Modify and finalise• Step 6: Disseminate your policy• Step 7: Monitor, evaluate and refresh

Who will sit on your working group?

Actively involved

Consulted

Kept informed

ACTIVITY 8

Your food policy is not just a piece of paper!

• Consider the different forms ways you can present your policy e.g. a parent summary, leaflet, website copy, poster, prospectus summary

• Produce displays around school to support the key messages

• Display in your dining room through pictures and key words / phrases from the policy

Sharing your food policy

• Share with other schools in your cluster • Is your policy easy to understand?

• consider other languages

• Use your School Food Ambassadors to launch the policy

• Launch at an event e.g. fair, parents evening, assembly• consider timing – start of a school year or term e.g. not

before Christmas!

Sharing your food policy

Packed Lunch Policy

• More than half of children in England eat a packed lunch (School Food Trust 2009)

• There are currently no national regulations in place for food that can be brought in from home including snacks

• In 2007 only 1% of packed lunches met all of the final school food and nutrient based standards for school food (Evans et al,2007)

Why have a packed lunch policy?

What should a healthy packed lunch look like?

• Is it possible to make a cheap balanced packed lunch?

• Iceland, lidl, pound shop• E.g. tinned fruit, white bread, seasonal food, are

school meals a cheaper option

Affordable packed lunches

• Flexibility, affordability, cultural diversity!• Realistic - ‘not finger wagging’ or ‘the food police’• Gradual changes • Affordable • Support the School Food Standards• Should be visual (words & pictures)• Can be embedded as part of whole school food

policy – will need extra emphasis and promotion

Packed lunch policy - summary

• What are your experiences of packed lunch policies?

• What works well?• What challenges have you faced?• How can you monitor or enforce your policy• Consider not having a packed lunch option?

Group discussion …

ACTIVITY 9

Packed lunch policy resources …

Available at www.schoolwellbeing.co.uk

Monitoring food in schools …

How to avoid being the food police!

• Evidences the impact of your policies • School Food Ambassadors

– Surveys– Observations

• Food consumption• Food behaviours

– Helps to shape your curriculum– Meet the needs of your pupils

Monitoring food in schools

What is School Food Ambassadors?

• School Food Ambassadors (SFA) is a unique student-led programme for monitoring school food. Elected students will take the lead for school food and represent the voice of their peers.

Why is there a need for School Food Ambassadors

• To increase school meal uptake & quality• To ensure school food & the dining experience

meets the needs of children and young people• To share responsibility of all aspects of

improving school food culture• Promote student voice and participation

• By observing and interviewing they could monitor:– actual food served against expected food served

– food waste, availability, quality, quantity, presentation

– dining environment and experience, noise, behaviour

– gather opinions, ideas and conduct surveys.

Monitoring through SFA

Key points …

• Keep it simple - one focus at a time• Planning - set timescales and change the focus

for each term / project• Surveys - can just involve a sample of pupils

although more surveys = more reliable data• The more you monitor - the more you will know -

the more you can change

• How can you monitor and influence the food pupil eat:

1. Packed lunches

2. Snacks

3. Drinks

4. Outside of school e.g. local shops, ice cream vans, take always

5. Food eaten at home

Monitoring food consumption

ACTIVITY 10

My Health, My School Survey 2014

www.myhealthmyschoolsurvey.org.uk

What is the MHMS Survey? www.myhealthmyschoolsurvey.org.uk

• Developed by the Health & Wellbeing Service• Replaces the ECM/GUIL Survey• Pilot in 2006/07 followed by 6 years full implementation• Reflects national and local policy issues• It is a free* online, anonymous pupil survey• Available to all pupils in years 5, 6, 7, 9, & 11

The survey remains free to use for all schools and offers a range of additional benefits:

• easier online access for pupils and staff• improved teacher support resources and lesson plans• new visual display analysis to supplement tabled data• new option to compare against citywide data

Sections•Healthy Eating

•PE, School Sport and Physical Activity

•Drugs, Alcohol & Tobacco

•Sexual Health

•Safety & Anti-bullying

•My School

Updated online resources

•Manager Checklist

•Parent Letters

•Safeguarding

•Survey content

•Lesson plans (3)

•Pupil diary

• Today we have provided an introduction to:– School Food Plan– School Meals– Contract management– School Food Standards– The Curriculum– Food Policy & Packed Lunch Policies– Monitoring food provision and consumption– Why is school food and healthy eating so important?

Summary of todays session

• Obesity in England and Leeds– Leeds Reception: 9.7%, Year 6: 19.7%

– England: Reception 9.3% Year 6 18.9%

• Leeds Underweight R: 1% Y6 1.6%

• Iron 45% teenage girls do not eat the recommended amount

• Calcium Almost 20% teenage girls don’t have enough

• Vit D -10-16% children in the UK have a low Vit D Status

Why school food is so important

• Poor diet (and fasting) impairs learning, & has an immediate effect on behaviour, concentration and cognitive ability (Benton, 2001; A.Sorhaindo, L Feinstein, 2006; DCSF, 2007).

• Links between breakfast and readiness to learn• Links between lunchtimes and behaviour in the

classroom in the afternoon

Nutrition and academic performance

• Don’t forget to fill it in

• Book a date with the school food advisors now for follow up support

School Food Action Plan

Thank you!

Any questions?

Please complete your course evaluation

Course resources available online at: http://www.schoolwellbeing.co.uk/pages/school-food-all-you-need-to-know-7th-october