Councillor urges school meal take up
Warwickshire County Council’s portfolio holder for Children, Young People and Families Cllr Izzi Seccombe has expressed disappointment that more schoolchildren have not taken up school meals.
According to a report from the School Food Trust, 39% of primary school pupils in England are eating school meals but only 35% of secondary school pupils do. A target of increasing the take up of school meals by 10% by the autumn now looks likely to be missed.
In Warwickshire figures are lagging slightly behind the national average with 35.2% of primary schoolchildren eating school dinners but only 31% of secondary pupils having school meals.
This is despite Warwickshire County Council’s caterers having won various awards with almost 90% of the county’s schools achieving healthy school status with diet being an important criterion in selection.
Cllr Seccombe said: “I have to admit to being slightly disappointed that more Warwickshire schoolchildren are not eating school meals. Childhood obesity is becoming ever more serious, with some scientists claiming that we have a generation which will be survived by their parents. Clearly, now is the time to act before the problem gets out of hand.
“Aside from health, there are also other very good reasons for schoolchildren to eat school meals. Kitchen staff aim for a nutritionally balanced diet, with ingredients of the highest quality sourced, where possible from the UK. This can be conducive to learning whereas ingredients present in confectionery and other ’junk’ foods, which is often what children eat instead of a school meal, are linked to low attention levels and hyperactive behaviour.
“I urge parents to take heed of the messages that the county council has put out to try and emphasise the importance of the young eating healthily. The standard of meals at schools in Warwickshire is extremely high. In terms of nutrition, they are balanced and tasty and will offer schoolchildren real benefits to their health and their educations.”