Experts have voiced fears about how schools will fund a proposed overhaul of school meals in England.
Deep-fried food will be banned from school menus, while sugary snacks will be limited, as part of plans to tackle childhood obesity and tooth decay, the .
The most recent research into compliance with the School Food Standards found that 60 per cent of secondary schools were failing to meet them.
Extra funding ‘essential’
The government has insisted that healthier options do not necessarily mean higher costs. It is now asking schools, as part of a , what practical help would assist them in providing healthier school meals.
However, Brad Pearce, national chair of The School Food People, which supports the school food sector in England and Wales, said fresher food would inevitably be more expensive for schools and warned that the Middle East crisis would further increase prices.
Funding for free school meals has increased by less than 2 per cent this year, he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, while inflation has risen sharply over the past few years.
Henry Dimbleby, a former government food tsar and author of the 2021 review the Independent National Food Strategy, said small schools with fewer than 150 pupils - of which he estimated there were about 8,000 in England - already lose about £5,000 a year on school meals.
He urged the government to provide funding for small schools to help them afford these new standards.
Tom Middlehurst, deputy director of policy at the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “What’s clear from the outset is that these changes must be implemented in a practical way that works for schools and caterers.
“We are pleased that the government has increased the rate for providing primary breakfast clubs to £1 per child, but where further changes are going to increase the cost of providing breakfast clubs or free school meals beyond this, it’s essential that there is additional funding available to compensate.”
Consultation starts today
Under the government’s new proposals, desserts, ice cream, waffles and baked goods such as puddings and cakes can be served only once a week. These dishes will need to contain at least 50 per cent fruit.
Schools will also no longer be able to offer unhealthy “grab and go” options such as sausage rolls and pizza every day, and deep-fried food will be eliminated from menus entirely.
Fruit will need to be served for the majority of the week instead of sugary snacks, with including mains such as cottage pie with root-and-veg mash, Mexican-style burritos, jerk chicken with rice and peas and spaghetti bolognese.
Each school will be asked to publish its menu online to help improve compliance, under the proposals, which are being put to a .
Each dish will be accompanied by one or more portions of vegetables and salad, and sides cooked using fat or oil, such as chips and hash browns, will be served no more than twice a week.
However, a “phased” approach is being proposed for secondary schools, allowing them to offer two portions of desserts or sweet treats a week from September next year, reducing to one by 2028.
The government said it will develop a “robust national enforcement system”, including monitoring schools. The full details of this will be announced in September.
The government also said it wants every school to appoint a lead governor to be responsible for school food.
A third of pupils overweight
Despite the proposed ban on deep-fried food, breadcrumb-coated or batter-coated options such as fish and chips will still be permitted once a week under the plans.
The first new school food standards since 2014 will aim to increase fibre intake by ensuring that more fruit, vegetables and wholegrains are on offer. The standards have been developed with help from health experts and nutritionists.
Around one in three children are leaving primary school overweight or obese, while tooth decay is the leading cause of hospital admissions for children aged 5 to 9.
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “We’re improving the quality of food served in schools so parents can count on their children getting healthy meals.
“This is about easing the cost of living today and supporting better health for the future.”
Education secretary Bridget Phillipson said the proposals represented “the most ambitious overhaul of school food in a generation” and were “long overdue”.
