Children’s Food Trust launches menu-checking service for schools
The Children’s Food Trust (CFT) has launched a service to help schools guarantee that their menus meet the new school food standards announced last month.
The menu checking service gives schools and caterers an easy way to make sure their menus are compliant with the new legal requirements that come into force next year.
From January 2015, all local authority maintained schools and academies and free schools set up before 2010 and created from June 2014 onwards must meet the new food-based standards.
CFT senior nutritionist Claire Wall said: “Our menu checking service is designed to help caterers and cooks ensure they are meeting the new school food standards. Whether you are developing one or multiple menus, it can take a lot of time and effort to make certain your menus come up to scratch.
“Our service will give schools confidence they are compliant with the standards and that their food provides the energy and nutrients children and young people need to do well.
“Through the service our expert nutritionists will help reassure schools that they are meeting their legal obligations to provide healthy food to children in their care. Our team will check your menus, using their years of experience working with schools and early years settings, and recommend improvements and to support schools in offering the best service possible.”
The CFT advised the expert panel on school food standards and pilot tested the new standards with schools and caterers before they were launched. It also produced the voluntary food and drink guidelines for early years settings on behalf of the Department for Education.
Wall added: “Being able to show your menus have been checked by the Children’s Food Trust is a really positive thing for schools as it shows the pupils and their parents the school is committed to providing great meals as well as improving the health and wellbeing of their students.”
For more information about the Children’s Food Trust’s menu checking service, email info@childrensfoodtrust.org.uk or call 0114 299 6901.