Putting Food Back on the Table
Posted by Laura Sandys, MP for South Thanet, at 16:50, Mon 28 October 2013:
Good, healthy food is nothing but glorious and a simple change in diet can have a huge impact on our health and very importantly the academic attainment of our children.
That’s why the Government’s announcement that there will be Free School Meals for EVERY single child in Reception, Year 1 and 2 from September 2014 will have a very positive impact on children in Thanet. The results of the pilots that ran from 2009-2011 speak for themselves. In schools where free school meals were universally available, there was huge academic improvement. The children performed an impressive two months ahead of other children of the same age. Interestingly, the universal free school meals also gave literacy levels more of a boost than the compulsory nationwide literacy hour. The children who benefited the most during these pilots were those who came from the least wealthy backgrounds.
Of course good food is about more than feeding the brain and we all know how important it is to lead a healthy lifestyle. The quality of school dinners has improved a great deal since Jamie Oliver let us in to canteens around the country but universal free school meals also improved the quality of food dramatically. With more children taking up the offer of a school meal, standards rose and meals became healthier with for example 23% more vegetables included.
Eating good food is important but so is learning about nutrition, cooking and food in the wider sense. As far as I am concerned, students should be taught how to prepare and cook food: it is a basic life skill that sadly seems to have been lost. I have been campaigning for the last few years to ensure that every child has food education classes so I was delighted when earlier this year we obtained a very clear commitment that kids in primary schools would all learn to cook.
We have long needed to reevaluate our children’s relationship with food and I’m pleased that the Government is helping with this. By making changes now, we will undoubtedly reap the benefits later and our children will be both smarter and healthier as a result.
- Laura's View, Thanet Extra. 16th October 2013
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