Releasing catering from its timewarp

scameron — Wed, 20 Jul 2011 15:45:24 +0100

There is a national emergency currently stalking the land that is not receiving the attention it deserves. Childhood obesity and children showing signs of future illnesses such as diabetes, heart disease, strokes and the other ‘flagship' symptoms related to poor nutrition and lack of exercise are mushrooming each and every day.

The A-Z of school life – Fit for the Future, Getting to Grips and Health

scameron — Thu, 20 May 2010 09:39:02 +0100

The A-Z of school life is about making your school a great place for children to learn. No botox or surgery required, just a common sense, methodical approach based on the questions, ‘why do we do it this way? Is there another, better way we could do things? What’s stopping us from trying?’ Just as we need to look after ourselves, schools need ongoing maintenance. It’s your job as leader to know which parts could do with improving and doing something about it. That’s why the A-Z is important.

Obesity, healthy lifestyles and the role of schools

jlee — Fri, 07 May 2010 10:26:18 +0100

With 80 per cent of schools now gaining Healthy Schools Status (HSS), there is a growing recognition of the link between healthy pupils and high attainment in school. At the Children’s Trust level of local strategic leadership, 125 out of 152 local authorities (82 per cent) have included a childhood obesity indicator as one of 35 priority targets in their Community Plan from 198 national indicators.

Focusing on student and family health

scameron — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 10:13:37 +0100

Background

A healthy diet for early years

scameron — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 12:00:09 +0000

As an extension of their work on healthy eating in schools, East Sussex County Council Trading Standards recently conducted the Nippers’ Nutrition study, to look at the nutritional content of food provided to children in childcare. Increasingly, children are spending full days at nursery so their main source of nutrition will be obtained there. Eating patterns are established in childhood, and if the current trend in obesity and other dietary related illnesses is to be reversed, action should be taken here.

The importance of healthy eating for young children

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:32 +0100

‘Good nutrition is important for all, especially for those younger than five years as these years are demanding for the developing child. They are the years in which children acquire many of the physical attributes and the social and psychological structures for life and learning’. (British Medical Association 2005)

Helping young children understand the importance of a healthy lifestyle

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:32 +0100

School context
Greenford Primary School is a rural school in west Dorset with 125 children on roll, 24 of them in the Foundation class. At Greenford we firmly believe that ‘Every Child Matters’, and try to instil in all our children, from the Foundation Stage onwards, a responsibility to take care of themselves, and to educate them to understand that diet and exercise matter.

Bridging the gap between health and the early years

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:32 +0100

Background to the project
As health visitor assistants working with a team of health visitors in an area of diverse health and social needs we feel that a healthy lifestyle is not just about having nutritious food, being illness free, and physically fit. It is also about having a sense of wellbeing and gaining the skills needed to be a confident, useful member of society.

Healthy eating at Sutton Grammar School for Boys

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:14 +0100

Campaign

Healthy eating has been a big issue recently for schools. By the end of 2005 Jamie Oliver’s TV and political campaign to improve school dinners achieved an important goal by getting the government to pledge:

Making medical consultations work

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:10 +0100

‘One in 10 boys and one in seven girls are overweight.’ ‘Today’s children eat fewer key nutrients than 50 years ago.’ ‘One in six 15-year olds is obese.’ ‘90% of children’s lunchboxes contain foods high in fat, salt or sugar.’ ‘British children eat less than half the recommended intake of fruit and vegetables.’

How local is your food?

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:08 +0100

Nurseries and schools are increasingly coming under pressure to ‘buy local’ especially where food is concerned. All the signs are that this movement will ultimately become as big – if not bigger – than the organic food sector.

Rewards for serving safer food

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:59 +0100

Norwich is at the forefront of a new publicity initiative designed to encourage all places which prepare food for consumption to be safe and hygienic. Nurseries and early years centres are regarded as a key target for the scheme.

The effect of diets on young children's behaviour

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:58 +0100

It may sound amazing, but studies of children (and of teenagers and prisoners) have repeatedly shown that disruptive and even violent behaviour can be dramatically altered simply by changes to diet.

Using national healthy school status to achieve the five outcomes for children

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:56 +0100

The reverberations of Jamie’s School Dinners are still sending minor after-shocks through the education system but the cognoscenti are aware that major changes were afoot well before Jamie met Nora. The Children Act of November 2004 is gradually being implemented and one of its fundamental changes is to amend the systems by which children’s services are inspected at various levels, including schools.

A whole-school approach to healthy eating

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:51 +0100

September 2006 saw the introduction of the government’s food-based standards for school lunches. Many schools in England are already heavily engaged in managing the successful transition of their school food provision, whilst others have been enjoying the fruits of offering healthy lunch choices for some time now.

Making a meal of it: return to tender

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:51 +0100

It’s official, the world’s gone mad, as confirmed one weekend in May 2006. Each weekend I buy several newspapers and read them, usually the Express, The Times, the Mail and the Mirror. An Independent might creep in now and then. During the school holidays my reading list may also include the Observer and the Guardian. I like to take in a wide range of views. I watch Sky News for the same reason.

Global citizenship and healthy schools – Manchester Healthy Schools Partnership

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:48 +0100

What is a Healthy School?

A healthy school is one that is successful in helping pupils to do their best and build on their achievements. It is committed to ongoing improvement and development. It promotes physical and emotional health by providing accessible and relevant information and equipping pupils with the skills and attitudes to make informed decisions about their health. Such a school will work in partnership with the local community to create an ethos of shared learning and development.

Developing a whole-school food policy

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:46 +0100

Recent guidelines on school food

The school environment, the behaviour of staff and pupils and the messages that pupils receive through the formal curriculum all play a crucial role in influencing children's knowledge and understanding of health and nutrition.

Energy fuel

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:45 +0100

What we eat has a huge impact on how we feel each day and the level of energy we have. Having a variety of foods will help ensure we maintain the level of protein, carbohydrates and fats we need each day. The morning is a key time to restore energy levels. This is the time we need to replace the glucose level in our body to enhance learning, memory and thinking. We need to 'break the fast' and make sure we have some breakfast whether we choose cereal, toast or fruit juice. One of the best energy foods is oats, such as muesli or porridge.

Hydrate the brain

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:45 +0100

Mental performance can fall by 10% when your pupils are thirsty and it will also add to tiredness, headaches and irritability. Having water readily available to children links well with learning programmes as well as promoting healthy lifestyles in your school. Frequent small intakes of water are better for learning than limiting drinks to breaks and lunchtimes, with children needing to drink a total 8 glasses of water during the day.

Making the move to better food

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:36 +0100

Over the two years that the Hull programme has been running, school meals have been in the media and political spotlight. Back in 2006, Anna Denny, nutrition scientist at British Nutrition Foundation, provided the following background information to readers of Secondary Headship.

Schools urged to get children to drink more

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:23 +0100

In its report, Drinking In Schools, the Expert Group on Hydration offers guidance on understanding the importance of adequate hydration for children’s health and academic performance.

Omega oils boost brain power

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:19:15 +0100

After they had taken daily supplements of fish oil for three months 60% of the toddlers had improved concentration. Their learning skills were improved and symptoms of attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were reduced.