School meals in primary schools in England

The Government introduced statutory Nutritional Standards for school lunches in April 2001 (The Education (Nutritional Standards for School Lunches) (England) Regulations 2000).
These are based on Government advice on healthy eating – the Balance of Good Health.

The standards prescribe the types of foods that should be available from the four main food groups (starchy foods; vegetables and fruit; milk and dairy foods; and meat, fish and alternatives) along with the frequency with which they should be served.

The guidance on implementing the standards and broader guidance on good practice in school catering are available from the link at the foot of this page.

It is the responsibility of the local education authority or, where a budgetary element for school meals has been delegated to them, a school's governing body, to ensure that food available at lunchtime meets the Government's minimum nutritional standards.

This research aimed to assess compliance with the statutory standards and the associated guidance, to assess whether the food consumed by children meets nutritional guidelines and to gather other relevant background information from a nationally representative sample of primary schools in England.

The fieldwork was carried out between April and June 2005. The study had three main aims:

Aim 1
To assess whether the food provided by the school or caterer meets the statutory nutritional standards, set out in the regulations and associated guidance, for all children throughout the service period.
Aim 2
To assess whether the food provided meets the Caroline Walker Trust Nutritional Guidelines for School Meals set out in 1992.
Aim 3
To identify the food consumption and nutrient intakes of the primary school children from school meals and to compare these to the Caroline Walker Trust Guidelines.

In addition, the survey will provide information about:

• school meal uptake (free and paid-for), at school level
• the nature of the contract with the school or caterer (if applicable) and monitoring arrangements
• any additional standards set by the LEA or school
• catering practice (use of salt, fat etc.) and level of staff involvement and training in encouraging healthy eating
• other relevant contextual information e.g. price, individual schools' policies, the eating environment, marketing of school meals and the availability of food from other outlets within the school

Data were collected from 151 primary schools in England, including information on the food selections and consumption of 7058 primary school pupils age 4-12 years.

The results show that the majority of primary schools were not meeting all of the National Nutritional Standards for School Lunches (2001) at the beginning and end of service. Schools most commonly failed the standards by serving starchy foods cooked in oil or fat more than three times a week and not serving fruit-based desserts at least twice a week.

Overall, schools offered too many foods containing fat and foods and drinks containing sugar. Although healthier options were on offer, pupils chose more of the less healthy options, for example choosing higher fat main dishes nearly twice as often as lower fat main dishes, despite both options being offered equally often.

Analysis of nutrient intakes against the Caroline Walker Trust Guidelines (1992) suggested that for meals as chosen, mean intakes of most nutrients either met or were close to the recommendations, although percentage energy from saturated fat was higher than recommended for both infants and juniors and mean intakes of energy, folate and iron were lower than recommended for juniors. Similarly, for meals as eaten, mean percentage energy from saturated fat was higher than recommended and mean intakes of energy, non-starch polysaccharides (fibre), calcium and iron were lower than recommended for both infants and juniors. Mean folate intakes in junior pupils were also low.

Less than half of the meals, as eaten by both infants and juniors, met the Caroline Walker Trust Guidelines (1992) for non-starch polysaccharides, vitamin A, folate, calcium, iron, percentage energy from fat and percentage energy from saturated fat. However, overall the nutrient intakes seen in primary school pupils were better than those seen in secondary school pupils in the survey School meals in secondary schools in England (2004). This may in part reflect the fact that primary schools offered soft drinks, confectionery and savoury snacks, chips and other potatoes cooked in oil or fat less often, and vegetables/salad more often than secondary schools.

A full report of the results and research brief have been published and can be accessed from the link at the foot of this page.

Copies of the full report (RR753) – priced £4.95 – are available by writing to DfES Publications, PO Box 5050, Sherwood Park, Annesley, Nottingham NG15 0DJ. Cheques should be made payable to 'DfES Priced Publications'. Copies of this Research brief (RB753) are available free of charge from the above address (tel: 0845 60 222 60).

For further details about the research please contact:
Michele Weatherburn
Department for Education and Skills,
6D Sanctuary Buildings,
Great Smith Street,
London SW1P 3BT

Tel: 020 7925 5953
Email: michele.weatherburn@dfes.gsi.gov.uk

email: science@foodstandards.gsi.gov.uk

Or
DfES guidance to caterers for school lunch standards

DfES Primary school meals research report