In Scotland? Learn more about FFL Scotland here.
In Scotland? Learn more about FFL Scotland here.
28 June 2023
Food for Life, a programme run by the Soil Association, have been bringing schools, nurseries, hospitals, care homes, and their surrounding communities together around the core ethos of healthy, tasty, and sustainable food for over twenty years.
As the winners of Jamie Oliver’s Good School Food Awards are announced, with Soil Association’s Head of Food Policy Rob Percival on the judging panel, today is a day to celebrate all the inspiring work happening around food and food culture. Twenty years on from Food for Life’s beginnings, it’s heartening to see the value of school food being taken seriously by so many settings, organisations and local leaders.
The winners are all brilliant examples of the great things that happen when communities come together to make the food served in schools a priority.
Rob Percival, Head of Food Policy at Soil Association says:
“We salute each and every school which entered this year’s Good School Food Awards. There is so much care, excellence and innovation taking place around food in schools around the country, it’s heartening to see pupils, cooks, caterers, governors and teachers coming together around a commitment to healthy eating and food education. Food for Life has been championing the best in school food for the past 20 years. We’ve seen what’s possible and we’re excited to be working with some of the best schools in the country as we look ahead to the next 20 years.”
Whether it’s a teacher leading work in the school garden, like many did through Food for Life Get Togethers Plant and Share campaign, pupils actioning a plan to reduce food waste, like at Food for Life school St Mary’s Catholic in Loughborough, or caterers working with the local community to ensure healthy, sustainable food is on the menu, like at Food for Life school Radleys in Walsall, it’s all part of Food for Life’s movement to make Britain healthier through food.
Food for Life’s pioneering ‘whole setting approach’ means that the positive impact of a good food culture doesn’t stop at the school gates – whole communities have been positively impacted.
The Food for Life Award guides schools through its criteria, including: at least 75% of the menu is freshly prepared from unprocessed ingredients, menus are seasonal and in-season produce is highlighted for pupils, and that schools make efforts to actively engage parents and the wider community in their cooking and growing activities.
Through the Food for Life Served Here Award, caterers up and down the country have been working hard to ensure high-quality and sustainable food is making its way into schools. Caterers who hold the Food for Life Served Here Bronze Award or above only use free-range eggs, ingredients free of additives and trans fats, meat and dairy where animal welfare standards are met and no endangered fish. In addition to this, 75% of menus are freshly prepared and seasonal ingredients are prioritised when designing menus.
As the Good School Food Awards shine a spotlight on how important the people on the ground making these changes are, and the impact they can have on the nation’s health, it’s a great time to reflect on how much further things need to go and how citizens can make their voices heard.
Schools and authorities who are interested in making good food the norm can find out more about enrolling as a Food for Life school on our website or by contacting Food for Life at ffl@foodforlife.org.uk.
If you’re a parent or community member who would like to see the many benefits of Food for Life in your area, write to your local MP or school board to express your interest in the programme.