Jamie Oliver:

Jamie Oliver's fears over meal standards in free schools and academies

25th November 2011, 9:06am

Jamie Oliver has voiced his concerns for the future of school meals and their nutritional standards, calling the Conservatives “very clever” for introducing free schools, an extension of the academy programme.

Like academies, they are not run by local authorities. As a result they are free to provide services such as catering as they see fit without reference to the nutritional standards that apply in state schools.

Speaking on BBC Breakfast this morning, Oliver said that although so much has been achieved with school meals and the nutritional standards, the new free schools, together with academies, could undo all the good work and allow bad habits to creep back in.

Asked if he still worried about school meals he said: "Massively. Let's be clear though, five years ago there was more regulation for dog food than there was our children's food and we've achieved so much."

Co-presenter Charlie Stape asked Oliver if he thought caterers were fighting a losing battle. The chef replied by highlighting how school meal uptake had increased over the last five years. He also talked passionately about the link between good food and the positive impact on the abilities of students.

Despite describing himself as "apolitical", he used the opportunity to label the Conservatives as "very clever" for introducing free schools.

Oliver said that instead of abolishing the nutritional standards altogether the government had simply invested in a fresh wave of new schools, which were able to side-step current rules and regulations.

He said a third of secondary schools were now classed as free schools or academies and that the "erosion of the nutritional standards is effectively the erosion of public health".

Co-presenter Susannah Reid argued that if good food improved a student's ability as much as Oliver claimed, then why would free schools not realise that and provide good school dinners anyway.

Oliver responded by saying that some free schools might well serve very good food of a nutritious standard, but not all of them would take that viewpoint.

He added: "I'm not saying that all services are perfect, but I'm not saying all services are bad. Head teachers have an awful lot to deal with and they are essentially running the biggest restaurant in town. I don't know of any other restaurant that has to serve 1,800 covers in less than 45 minutes."

He took a swipe at education secretary Michael Gove calling him a "nice man" but one that "will let down the next generation of kids".

In a news report shown just before the live BBC discussion, LACA chair Lynda Mitchell expressed her concern over free schools and academies.

She said that LACA members had a duty to provide nutritious food for children and that free schools would be allowed to return to unhealthy meals if they chose to.

One company that already supplies catering services to the new academies is Innovate Services.

Chief executive Derick Martin said that free schools will not result in Turkey Twizzlers making a comeback, adding that students are more health-conscious than they were five years ago.

"Over the last few years, attitudes have changed regarding school catering and we are never going to see a return of Turkey Twizzlers on the menus as a result.

"There are a number of reasons for this – the nutritional guidelines have, of course, made a difference overall, but also we believe that attitudes have significantly changed amongst not only school staff and operators, but with students themselves who are for more health-conscious today.

Martin said there was a clear duty of care for caterers, principals and senior leadership teams at academies.

"Academies must ensure the menus remain healthy, despite exemptions from the guidelines.

"At Innovate we operate in over 65 schools and academies throughout the UK, from Hull to Plymouth, including all the major new west London academies. Not only are we seeing a high uptake in school food, but also the number of plated hot meals served is higher than average."

Related Articles:

• 02 Dec 2011 - LACA responds to Guardian letter on school meal standards in academies
• 28 Oct 2011 - LACA responds to Jamie Oliver’s views published in The Education Guardian
• 01 Jul 2010 - 'Jamie Oliver approach' won't tackle obesity, warns health secretary

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