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Lethbridge Primary School
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How has catering system changed?
Lethbridge was about to terminate their food service due to financial issues, as the Local Authority was increasing their charges and the school’s governors felt that they could not allocate money from the school’s budget to this area. However, two eager parents, Pam and Laura, wanted to continue the catering service and in doing so, improved the quality of the food.
Pam and Laura approached the school to discuss their plans to continue the meal service. Initially they felt that the school lacked resources, but with the help and support from the Soil Association, changes began to occur. A feasibility study was carried out to ascertain the support of parents and children, and a business plan was presented to the governors.
Questionnaires were distributed to the children to discover their food preferences, and to gain an idea of the sort of foods that they would like on the menu. These questionnaires were completed within the classroom.
Surveys were also carried out on parents to see what their opinions on the changes would be, and they discovered that many parents were worried about the quality of the school meals.
Although Pam and Laura did not have catering backgrounds, Pam’s passion for good food and Laura’s organisation skills have enabled them to succeed. They have both worked exceptionally long hours to ensure that a food service continued.
Their commitment to obtain the required qualifications, e.g. Basic Food Hygiene and Safety Compliance, and their support from both the school and Jeannette Orrey, the Soil Association’s Food for Life Advisor, have helped them to succeed. Both Pam and Laura are continuing to develop their qualification within the food service, Pam is currently taking the Intermediate Food Hygiene Certificate and will then be signing up to complete the Advanced Certificate.
Pam and Laura originally approached the school in February 2004 and started cooking in the September of the same year.
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Improvements to the catering service
- Highly processed foods have been replaced with locally sourced fruits, vegetables and meats.
- Meals are now homemade.
- Chips are only served once a week.
- The children drink water at lunchtime.
- Introduction of organic produce.
- The dining environment has changed, with table clothes, flowers, china plates and proper cutlery. The children love the new look of the dining hall and treat it with respect – and there are very few breakages!
- The lunch hour has been re-organised so that all of the children come out of the classroom to eat at lunch time.
- The catering staff have been retrained.
- The catering staff work with the children to discover their preferences.
- New equipment has been purchased for the kitchen, which had previously contained no chopping boards, knives or mixing bowls, as the previous caterers relied on processed ready made foods!
- Pam and Laura worked with the teaching staff to increase the awareness of healthy living within the school by:
- Eat a Rainbow (Stroke Awareness) Week, where the children were encouraged to try different varieties of vegetables.
- Food is often incorporated into the curriculum, e.g. in Art, children drew patterns found in fruits and vegetables.
- An assembly highlighting the importance of healthy eating was given by one class.
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DayMonday
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Tuesday
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Wednesday
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Thursday
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Friday
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Homemade Salmon Fish Cakes or
Organic Chicken Burger
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Organic Minced Beef with hidden vegetables or
Cheese & Broccoli Tart
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Chicken Pasta Bake or Macaroni Cheese
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Shepherds Pie,
Organic Pork Sausage or Vegetarian Shepherds Pie
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Cheese or Pepperoni Pizza
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Jacket Potatoes with fillings: Cheese, Tuna, Beans or Coleslaw
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Jacket Potatoes with fillings; Cheese, Tuna, Beans or Coleslaw
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Jacket Potatoes with fillings; Cheese, Tuna, Beans or Coleslaw
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Jacket Potatoes with fillings; Cheese, Tuna, Beans or Coleslaw
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Peas or Coleslaw
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Carrots & Broccoli
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Sweetcorn Mini Cobs
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Green Beans
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Spaghetti Hoops
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Homemade Jacket Wedges
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Yorkshire Puddings &
Mashed Potatoes
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Bread Roll
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Mashed Potatoes
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Garlic Bread
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Choice of: Chocolate Brownie, Yoghurt,
Cheese & Biscuits or Fresh Fruit
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Choice of: Yoghurt, Cheese & Biscuits, Fresh Fruit or Choc Ice
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Choice of: Cornflake Tart & Custard, Yoghurt or Cheese & Biscuits
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Choice of:
Fruit Muffins, Yoghurt,
Cheese & Biscuits or Fresh Fruit
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Choice of: Choc Ice, Cheese & Biscuits or
Yoghurt
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As we endeavour to use locally sourced ingredients our menus may be subject to change. We will notify you of these changes as soon as we are made aware of them. |
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Measuring success:
- Meal uptake has dramatically increased: previously only 10% of children were consuming school meals (40-50 meals served daily), and now over 40% are, which is more than 200 daily! These results were achieved within the first few weeks of the take over.
- Ingredients costs have increased from 30-40p per child to 70p, with no increase in charge to the children.
- The children have given positive feedback, and they have a good relationship with the cook and are happy to offer their opinions!
- The children love fresh fruit but can be a little wary of certain vegetables. They love carrots, peas and sweetcorn but have needed to be persuaded to try vegetables such as swede, cabbage, squash and peppers. The key is getting them to try – then they realise they actually taste quite good! The children have also been persuaded to sample the seasonal salad that is available daily.
- Lunchtime is now a very sociable occasion.
- The teachers, especially the head teacher, regularly eat lunch with the children.
- Feedback from the questionnaire sent to parents has been positive, and there have been some wonderful stories from parents commenting on the positive changes that they have noticed in their children’s eating habits at home. Some parents requested to become more involved in these changes and others wanted to receive more information.
- The parents pay the school for the meals on a weekly basis and Let’s Do Lunch then invoice the school.
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Where next?
- 6 schools have requested Pam and Laura’s help to manage their school meals service.
- In May 2005 the school will have a World Awareness Week and catering staff will be working closely with the teachers to ensure that the week’s menu reflects the different countries and cultures that they will be exploring. Each day the children will study a different country and traditional dishes from these countries will be served for lunch.
- Improve the quality of lunchboxes, by requesting that parents reduce the amount of crisps and sweets in the children’s lunchboxes. This will hopefully commence in September 2005.
- Freshly prepared sandwiches for parents. A recent questionnaire showed that nearly ¼ of parents were interested in the possibility of purchasing freshly made sandwiches when they take their children to school.
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Reasons for success:
- Pam and Laura’s determination that it could work.
- The support that the school offered in implementing the changes.
- The quality of the ingredients.
- Support from both parents and children.
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