Dinners not to be scoffed at!

Monday 17 September 2007

First it was Jamie Oliver unveiling the horror of Turkey Twizzlers, then it was bills passed in parliament.

Now there are many links to show healthy school dinners equal more energetic and higher achieving pupils. With a new company feeding the school children of Bexley, Lia Nicholls joined the pupils for dinner.

Roast lamb, beef stew, cheese and leek pie and chicken curry are just some of the dishes on the menu for primary school children in Bexley.

Fifty-five schools are now serving up hot, nutritious dinners since the appointment of family food company, Harrison Catering Services.

The new dishes meet government food standards designed to cut childhood obesity in the UK, with 90 per cent of Bexley dinners being made with fresh ingredients.

At the end of the summer term, only 20 per cent of Bexley's primary school children were opting for a school dinner. Harrison's aim is to get youngsters to ditch cold sandwiches and crisps for a two or three course meal.

With Ofsted inspectors now including dinners in its report, due to the link between diet and academic achievement, lunch seems to be becoming as important as a maths lesson.

Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver managed to get the Government to overhaul school dinners, but some pupils and parents are against new meals.

The Bexley Extra went to Barrington Primary School for a few helpings. On the day of our visit, 20 children tucked into a hot meal at the school in Barrington Road, Bexleyheath. But more pupils are being enticed.

Head teacher Jacquie Keelan said "We aim to have 50 sitting down for a dinner by Christmas. I think we are going to have it cracked".

Like many schools in the borough, those pupils having packed lunch or a school meal can sit together to dine. Mrs Keelan said "By allowing the children to sit with their friends, we are finding that peer pressure is making them want to try school dinners. It is the good old-fashioned tactic of them wanting what their friends have got".

Barrington pupils also have their own allotment and garden and get to cook and taste the fresh food they have grown.

Some pupils are pleased with the new menu and others are coming round. Liam Ashworth, 10, is an exception to the norm. He likes fruit and vegetables and would not necessarily choose burgers and chips. He said "These dinners are nice. They are much better than last year".

But with a muffin, a packet of crisps, biscuits and a banana, Ross Harrison, 9, was happier with a packed lunch. He said "I have tried dinners but I prefer a packed lunch". But he seemed keen to try the new dinners "If I don't like it then I will go home starving. But yours looks quite nice", he told our reporter.

Article from Bexley Extra

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