Islington's new member for Children and Young People, Ursula Woolley visited Yerbury Primary School this week(Wednesday) to see how they are approaching healthy eating.
The school is celebrating its own 'Eating at School Week' - involving children and parents in decisions over healthy eating with quizzes, competiion and homework.
The council is aiming for half of its schools to achieve 'Healthy Schools' accreditation by the end of this year. Healthy eating is a core part of this status - including a wider review of children's nutrition outside school, involving parents.
Cllr Ursula Woolley said:
"We've already made improvements in the quality of school meals. That's had a thumbs up from heads and pupils but it's just the start.
Islington Schools will meet new targets for school meals in September 2006. Now we want parents to tell us the priorities for action - whether that's changing how much choice children have, special diets or what foods they want on the menu."
ENDS
Yerbury's Eating at School Week activities included:
* Children's competitions including a menu for a healthy lunch box
* Special homework activities
* Local business people in to talk
* Parent's meeting with a dietician
* Children's quizes
* Special assemblies
* Each class devise a healthy school meal each day and at the end of the week choose the healthiest
* Lots of cooking of healthy dishes
* Parents coming in to talk to the children
Context: In summer 2005 the Council's Regeneration Review Committee started an investigation entitled 'Children Eating Well' - including options that could be explored when the current contract with Scolarest comes to an end in 2007.
A £100,000 pilot project in around half our schools in 2005 was specifically designed to increase the use of fresh ingredients, cooked on the premises. It was successful and popular with both headteachers and pupils and extended to all schools whose catering is provided by Scolarest.
In 2006, £400k was agreed from the Council's budget fro improvements to catering in the borough schools.
Note: School meals are funded by a combination of parental contributions, a grant and the funding from the schools themselves.
Government's new nutritional standards which come into effect in two stages: from September 2008 for primaries, and secondly from September 2009 for secondaries.
Page Last Updated: 29 July 2008