Aims & Objectives (Secondary Schools)

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Aim To ensure that each secondary school is able to provide appealing, good quality, healthy food which is prepared and cooked on site from fresh ingredients. It should be served in a pleasant environment which can meet the capacity of the whole school community. Objectives 1) To ensure that Merton Council develops a robust process to manage change in the provision of Secondary School meals, such that each school puts in place a plan by which they will achieve the overall aim. 2) Only good quality ingredients are used in school meals. 3) All cooking and food preparation is done on site. 4) Eating lunch is a pleasant experience for students. 5) The school lunch becomes an integral part of the education offered by the school. 6) The Council sets up an effective system for monitoring school dinners to ensure that the standards above are met and continue to be met. 7) To agree a target date by which all of the above will be achieved with clear, specific and measurable milestones. Specific Objectives 1) To ensure that Merton Council develops a robust process to manage change in the provision of Secondary School meals, such that each school puts in place a plan by which they will achieve the overall aim. This means that the Council needs to: agree clear, measurable goals. develop a realistic plan to achieve them; and identify the key managers who are responsible for making sure they are achieved. 2) Only good quality ingredients are used in school meals This means that school meals should aim to meet the Food for Life guidelines: 75% unprocessed 50% local 30% organic - The use of seasonal produce and seasonal menus should be encouraged to enable the Council to take advantage of more cost effective produce. - Immediate removal of all processed and pre-packaged food, coloured drinks, additive filled yoghourts and desserts. - Replacing low quality cheese and margarine currently used, which is full of hydrogenated fats, with butter and a better quality cheese. - Upgrading the quality of flour, rice and pasta to organic. All chemicals included in the Hyperactive Support Group list should be banned together with the following 'dirty dozen': 1. Mechanically recovered/separated/meat 2. Monosodium Glutamate E621 3. Sodium 5-ribonucleotide E635 4. Aspartame 5. Acesulfame K 6. Sodium Saccharine 7. Sodium Benzoate E211 8. Sulphur Dioxide E220 9. Azo Dyes: - Quinoline Yellow E104 - Brilliant Blue E133 - Sunset Yellow E110 - Carmoisine E122 - Ponceau 4R E124 - Indigo Carmine E132 10. High salt foods (more than 0.5g sodium or 1.2g of salt per 100g) 11. Hydrogenated fat, and more than 5g of saturated fat per 100g 12. Refined sugar 3) All cooking and food preparation is done on site. This means that: Staff should be trained in fresh food preparation. Sufficient staff hours available to prepare food from fresh ingredients on site. Kitchens suitably equipped to enable staff to prepare food from fresh ingredients, including: - Fridges - Preparation surfaces - Tools (Salad spinners, Stick blenders etc) 4) Eating lunch is a pleasant experience for students. This means that: queuing should be kept to a minimum and monitored regularly. There must be adequate dining room tables and chairs for those coming in for lunch. Dining room furniture should be fit for purpose. 5) The school lunch becomes an integral part of the education offered by the school. - This means that: The school may wish to consider a protected lunch break so students do not have to choose between an extra curricular activity or eating lunch. Lunch is seen as a necessary and important part of the school day. 6)The Council sets up an effective system for monitoring school dinners to ensure that the standards above are met and continue to be met. - This means that: minuted half-termly meetings to be held to go through the monitoring document. Attendees should include the Head (or Deputy), a senior meals supervisor, a cook, member of the school council and a member of the catering company. 7) To agree a target date by which all of the above will be achieved with clear, specific and measurable milestones.