Download school meals and nutritional policy

Rivenhall C. of E. Primary
School
Schools Meals &
Nutrition Policy
School Meals & Nutrition Policy
This policy includes the nutritional standards that have been required by the government since 2001.
The governing body should ensure that meal providers are competent to deal with the various health and
safety and food safety issues which arise in meal provision.
The governing body must provide facilities for pupils not taking school meals to eat meals that they bring to
school. The school cannot charge pupils for using these facilities.
Where requested, free meals must be provided for pupils whose parents receive certain benefits as detailed
in the current government and LA guidance, available on the Essex County Council website.
Rationale:
Good health is important for everyone. The Government wants to secure, maintain and improve children’s
and young people’s health and has set minimum national nutritional standards for lunches for pupils in
schools. A varied and balanced diet is an important way of protecting health and promoting proper growth
and development. In the short term it can help children to improve their concentration and fulfil their potential
both inside and outside school. Unhealthy diets, which include too many fatty foods, too much salt and not
enough vegetables and fruit, are linked to the risk of life-threatening diseases.
Primary school pupils have particularly high energy and nutrient needs in relation to their size. In their
overall diets it is often difficult to achieve adequate intake of energy, calcium, and iron:
 Calcium is important for bone health
 Foods rich in iron are important for preventing anaemia
 Food rich in foliates are important for adolescents, therefore primary children should be encouraged
to get into the habit of eating plenty of these foods
 Foods rich in zinc are important for the body to function properly but many children do not get
enough.
The school aims for pupils to have an understanding of what constitutes a healthy, balanced diet and
lifestyle, and is committed to promoting healthy eating by giving positive messages and by encouraging and
helping children to make good food choices.
Standards:
The school aims for all children to have a healthy diet, which, in line with the national standards, means:
 A balanced diet with plenty of variety and enough energy for growth and development and catering
for any children with allergies/food intolerances.
 Plenty of fibre-rich starchy foods such as bread, rice, pasta and potatoes.
 Plenty of fruit and vegetables; these must be available every day.
 Not eating too many foods containing a lot of fat, especially saturated fat.
 Moderate amounts of dairy products.
 Moderate amounts of meat, fish or alternative sources of protein suitable for vegetarians/vegans.
Red meat must be served at least twice a week and fish once a week. Cheese may be included in
this protein group.
 Not having sugary foods and drinks too often.
The national nutritional standards apply to:
 All lunches provided for pupils, whether they are free or paid for.
 Hot and cold food, including packed lunches provided by the school for pupils.
The school also ensures that drinking water is available to all pupils every day, free of charge.
The school will promote school meals by:
 Considering the likes and dislikes of children
 Working together, for example staff eating with pupils to reinforce healthy eating messages at
lunchtime
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Offering a balanced diet which provides a variety of foods
Promoting school meals by displaying menus attractively and prominently
Having theme days, for example linked to festivals or curriculum studies
Encouraging parents to come in and have lunch occasionally with their children
Monitoring nutritional standards
The governing body is responsible for monitoring the standards of the food provided. This can be done at
the same time as governors’ focused visits.
Regular email contact and visits are made by the school’s link at ECC School Meals Support team to:
 Monitor compliance with compulsory standards and other contractual requirements,
 Offer suggestions and guidance,
 Provide termly menu sheets for the school’s benefit.
Regular monitoring of the ‘customers’ is essential, to identify:
 What the pupils think of the food on offer
 What improvements could be made to the service
Pricing
As the school will be competing with home-provided packed lunches, and to encourage pupils to eat a
healthy balanced diet, the school must offer meals at an attractive price which is regularly analysed to
ensure best value and value for money.
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