Statement of intent

At Thornhill Primary School, we know that what our pupils eat and drink is paramount to their health and well-being.

This policy is in place to ensure that our pupils receive high-quality and nutritious food, and to promote their good health.

Providing good quality food improve children’s health, behaviour and performance.

Food-based standards define the foods and drinks permitted during the school day (until 3pm) and apply to all food and drink provided to pupils on and off school premises, including school trips.

Nutrient-based standards apply solely to school lunches. They set out the requirements for an average school lunch during a one-to-four week menu cycle. This includes the amount of energy and nutrients allowed.

This policy will be reviewed every year to coincide with changing food standards.

 

1. Executive summary
   1. A school lunch must be provided for pupils where a meal is requested or if they are eligible for free school meals.
   2. How lunches are taken can be decided by governing bodies, however they must ensure that they meet the School Food Standards 2014.
   3. Although there is no requirement for the meals to be hot, they should be provided wherever possible to ensure all pupils eat at least one hot meal every day.
   4. Free school meals must be provided if the pupil and/or parent meet eligible criteria.
   5. Drinking water must be provided on school premises free of charge at all times.
   6. Facilities in which to eat must be free of charge for pupils bringing their own meals. These facilities must include accommodation, furniture and supervision.
   7. Four to six-year-olds throughout England are eligible to receive a free piece of fruit or vegetable every school day through the School Fruit and Vegetable Scheme (SFVS). The governing body has the power to decide whether or not to take part in this scheme.
   8. From 1 January 2015, schools must ensure that lower fat or lactose reduced milk is available to children who want it at least once a day during school hours.
2. Current food-based standards for school lunches

There are 13 food-based standards for school lunches.

Schools must provide:

1. 1. Fruit and vegetables – no less than two portions of fruit and vegetables/salad per day per pupil must be provided. At least one must be vegetables/salad and one must be fruit.
   2. Oily fish – oily fish such as salmon or mackerel must be provided at least once every three weeks.
   3. Bread with no added fat or oil – this should be provided on a daily basis, and does not need to be free of charge.
   4. Drinking water – fresh drinking water must be available free of charge at all times.
   5. Healthier drinks – schools must only provide permitted drinks.

Schools must ensure that:

• 1. Salt should not be available to add to food after cooking, and must not be provided at tables or service counters.
  2. Condiments should only be available in sachets or individual portions of no more than 10g or 1 teaspoonful.
  3. Snacks, only nuts, seeds, fruit or vegetables without added fat, sat, sugar, or honey are to be provided. Savoury crackers and breadsticks can only be served with fruit, vegetables, or dairy food as part of a school meal.
  4. Meat products which are manufactured or homemade from each of the four food groups may not be provided more than once a fortnight across the school day:
• Group 1 – burger, hamburger, chopped meat, corned meat.
• Group 2 – sausage, sausage meat, link, chipolata, and luncheon meat.
• Group 3 – individual meat pie, meat pudding, Melton Mowbray pie, game pie, Scottish (Scotch) pie, pasty, sausage roll.
• Group 4 – any other shaped or coated products e.g. nuggets, meatballs.
  1. Starchy food cooked in fat or oil must not be provided on more than 3 days a week, across the school day.
  2. No more than 2 deep-fried food items should be provided in a single week across the school day.
  3. Cakes and biscuits that are provided at lunchtime but must not contain any confectionery.
  4. Confectionery must not be provided at any time of the school day.

1. Nutrient-based standards for school lunches

The nutrient-based standards for school lunches aim to make the food offered at lunchtime healthier by decreasing the fat, saturated fat, non-milk extrinsic (NME) sugar and sodium content, and increasing vitamin and mineral content.

There are 14 nutrient-based standards for school lunches. These apply to an average school lunch within a one to four week menu cycle, and relate to the overall composition of food rather than on an individual basis.

To calculate the average school lunch, all food and drink should be put into menu-planning and nutrient analysis software, together with portion sizes and estimated number of each item. This will include recipes for the food which has been prepared from scratch and any specific product details for brought in items. This should also include any drinks that are provided in all school food outlets at lunchtime. Bread however does not need to be included in this analysis.

The premise for providing bread for pupils is to encourage them to fill up on food rich in carbohydrates, rather than in high fat or high sugar.

School lunch is defined as all food and drink provided for pupils as their midday meals. If some of the food and drink provided at mid-morning break is considered to be part of the lunchtime provision, it should be included when calculating an average school lunch.

An average school lunch must provide:

• The amount of energy specified in the table below. The standard for energy is based on an average value, rather than a minimum or maximum, as pupils are developing at different rates and have different levels of activity.
• No more than the maximum allowance of fat, saturated fat, non-milk extrinsic (NME) sugars and sodium should be provided, as too much can be harmful.
• At least the minimum amount of stated for carbohydrate, protein, fibre, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, calcium, iron and zinc as too little can be harmful.
• Where a school provides both primary and secondary education, a school lunch provided to a junior pupil must comply with the requirements for primary schools as outlined in the table below; and a school lunch provided to a senior pupil must comply with the requirements for secondary schools as outlined in the table below.

 

 

1. Food-based standards for school food other than lunch

These regulations set out the requirements for school food provided across the school day at times other than lunch to registered pupils at a local authority maintained primary, secondary, special school or pupil referral unit, whether on the school premises or not, and to any other person on the school premises.

School food other than lunch also includes breakfast clubs, tuck shops, mid-morning break, vending machines, and after school clubs.

There are 11 food-based standards for food other than lunch.

Schools must provide:

1. 1. Fruit and vegetables at all school food outlets.
   2. Fresh drinking water at all times.
   3. Healthier drinks- schools must provide only permitted drinks.

Schools must ensure that:

• 1. Salt – this should not be available to add to food after cooking, and is not provided at tables or service counters.
  2. Condiments – these are only available in sachets or individual portions of no more than 10g or 1 teaspoonful.
  3. Snacks – only nuts, seeds, fruit or vegetables without added fat, sat, sugar, or honey are to be provided. Savoury crackers and breadsticks can only be served with fruit, vegetables, or dairy food as part of a school meal.
  4. Meat products – a meat product which is manufactured or homemade from each of the four food groups may not be provided more than once a fortnight across the school day:
• Group 1 – burger, hamburger, chopped meat, corned meat.
• Group 2 – sausage, sausage meat, link, chipolata, and luncheon meat.
• Group 3 – individual meat pie, meat pudding, Melton Mowbray pie, game pie, Scottish (Scotch) pie, pasty, sausage roll.
• Group 4 – any other shaped or coated products e.g. nuggets, meatballs.
  1. Starchy food cooked in fat or oil must not be provided on more than 3 days a week, across the school day.
  2. Deep-fried food – no more than 2 deep-fried food items should be provided in a single week across the school day.
  3. Cakes and biscuits – they can be provided at lunchtime but must not contain any confectionery.
  4. Confectionery – this must not be provided at any time of the school day.

1. Exemptions to the school food regulations

The School Food Regulations do not apply to food provided:

5.1. At parties or celebrations to mark religious or cultural occasions.

5.2. At occasional fund-raising events.

5.3. As rewards for achievement, good behaviour or effort.

5.4. For use in teaching in food preparation and cookery skills, provided that any food prepared is not served to pupils as part of a school lunch.

1. 1. On an occasional basis by parents or pupils.
   2. By maintained boarding schools who are allowed to provide cakes, biscuits, confectionery and snacks as part of an evening meal before 6pm.

Our after- school clubs which are used to raise funds for the Friends of School (eg) Youth Club/ Cinema club are exempt from food regulations but will offer healthy alternatives.

Interpretation

In this policy:

• “Confectionery” refers to chewing gum, cereal bars, processed fruit bars, non-chocolate confectionery, chocolate in any form (excluding hot chocolate), any product containing or wholly or partially coated with chocolate and any chocolate-flavoured substance (excluding cocoa powder used in cakes, biscuits and puddings or in an approved drink).
• “Healthier drinks” refers to fruit or vegetable juice (max 150mls), plain water (still or carbonated), lower fat milk or lactose reduced milk, plain soya, rice or oat drinks enriched with calcium, yoghurt drinks, unsweetened combinations of fruit or vegetable juice with plain water, tea, coffee, and hot chocolate.
• “Oily fish” includes anchovies, herring, kipper, mackerel, pilchards, salmon, sardines, trout, tuna (except canned tuna) and whitebait.
• “Starchy food” consists of all types of bread, pasta, noodles, rice, potatoes, sweet potatoes, yams, millet, and cornmeal.
• “Fruit and vegetables” refers to fresh, frozen, dried, canned in water or juice, or fruit based desserts.
• “Combination drinks” refers to combinations of fruit juice and lower fat milk or plain yoghurt, plain soya, rice or oat drinks enriched with calcium; cocoa and lower fat milk; flavoured lower fat milk.

 

1. Allergies

At Thornhill Primary School we are aware of the risks associated with food related allergies. We do our best to limit the likelihood of allergic reactions by:

• Recording known allergies in a central file and communicating these to staff through the creation of allergy reduction plans
• Keeping records of all foods served in relation to allergens present
• Recording allergens in home-made goods or those brought into school by parents/ carers
• Training staff on how to support children and adults who have an allergic reaction
• Reducing the number of foods which contain known allergens and using alternatives where possible
• Not allowing food/ utensil sharing
• Supporting parents as they teach children about their allergies and how to manage them

The current list of allergens includes:

 

Additional information:

While not all allergic reactions result in anaphylaxis, any reaction has the potential to be life-threatening. So ALL reactions should be taken seriously and treated immediately. Even students who have had a mild reaction in the past can have a severe reaction the next time.

Mild allergic reaction- monitor, provide water, contact parents for advice. If situation worsens treat as an emergency. If pupil has an Epi-Pen use it!

Severe allergic reaction- use Epi-pen, monitor, contact parents and emergency services.

Some of the signs of anaphylaxis include:

• SKIN: Flushed or pale skin, with swelling, a rash or itching
• RESPITORY: Difficulty swallowing or breathing, shortness of breath, a runny nose, or coughing repeatedly
• DIGESTIVE: itchy tongue, mouth or throat; vomiting, diarrohea or cramping
• CARDIOVASCULAR: feeling faint or dizzy with flushed or pale skin
• Younger students may not know how to talk about their symptoms and may just know that something feels “funny.”

 

Following an incident , the senior management team and Governing Body will investigate to ensure risks are reduced for the future.