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The celebration, led by the Soil Association’s Food for Life programme and Knorr Gravy, will put great school food in the spotlight through a series of roast dinner themed events taking place throughout the academic year.

James Cashmore, director of Food for Life, said: “It has never been more important for us to make healthy eating easy and normal for children and despite the fact that only one per cent of packed lunches meet the nutritional standards that currently apply to school food, 57% of pupils are not eating school lunches at all.

“It is far easier for children to get the nutrients they need to stay healthy from a cooked school meal, which is why we are putting great school food in the spotlight with the great roast dinner celebration.

“The celebration will give pupils and their families the chance to see just how enjoyable and easy it can be to eat a healthy meal at school and we hope it will inspire them to opt for school meals and take that first step towards a healthier and happier lifestyle.”

Schools will be encouraged to invite parents and other family members through the school gates to share a delicious and healthy lunch with their children, so they can see how great food can be.

The celebration hopes to inspire parents and other family members to select school dinners as the regular lunchtime choice for their kids.  

Sarah Branagan, marketing director of Unilever food solutions said: “Roast dinners are the highlight of most weekly school menus and the perfect way to showcase and indeed surprise parents of the quality of school food.

“With over half of gravy sold to schools being Knorr gravy, we are thrilled to be working with Food for Life on the Great Roast Dinner celebration to help schools raise the profile of their meals and encourage more children to choose healthy school dinners. We look forward to hearing all the success stories.”

Schools and caterers can register to join the free celebration at www.greatroastdinner.co.uk