Schools across Sheffield have attained bronze and silver awards as part of a national award scheme promoting nutritious school dinners and health-focused education.
Local schools won their Food For Life award, an initiative put in place by charity The Soil Association to encourage organic, healthy school meals and health-focused education across primary schools in the UK.
Lowedges Junior Academy (pictured) attained a silver award. Bronze awards were achieved by Lowfield Primary, Mansel Primary, Arbourthorne Community Primary , St Theresa’s Catholic Primary, Oasis Fir Vale, Phillimore Community Primary and Wybourn Community Primary.
To attain these awards, these schools have had to prove that their school dinners use organic, healthy, locally-sourced ingredients.
It also involved incorporating nutrition-focused education into the curriculum either through gardening, workshops, or school trips.
The awards were achieved as part of ongoing work between local schools and Eat Smart Sheffield, a project commissioned by Sheffield City Council to promote healthy eating among children.
Recently, Eat Smart Sheffield revealed that over 40 schools across Sheffield have enrolled onto the Food For Life programme.
Lisa Aldwin, programme manager of Eat Smart Sheffield, said the project gives advice to schools about how they can prioritise nutrition in their teaching and practice.
Education around healthy habits and living has become a core part of the curriculum for many of the schools involved.
Jo Searle, a teacher at bronze-winning Phillimore Community Primary School in Darnall, said: “Food Education is now firmly part of the school curriculum. As a school we run family cooking days during school holidays which are highly popular.”
Children want to be healthy, they want to help the environment and they want a better future
Chermaine Samphire, trainee teacher
Chermaine Samphire, who is currently on placement with Firth Park Academy, explained how she helped a previous school she trained with to achieve its bronze award.
She said: “The school is making changes that benefit the children and their families through healthy lifestyle changes both in school and in the wider community.
“Children want to be healthy, they want to help the environment and they want a better future – you can see this when talking to the children and seeing them engage with the program.”
In addition to helping schools achieve the Food For Life award, Eat Smart Sheffield also delivers workshops and advice to local schools and parents about eating healthily and child nutrition.
They provide resources, such as a pamphlet about advice to eat on a budget amidst the cost-of-living crisis, and also liaise directly with headteachers about the importance of balanced school dinners.
