Pupils at Oakthorpe Primary School tucked into a special menu on Thursday (15 March) to mark International School Meals Day.
* International School Meals Day celebrated on 15 March
* Pupils at Oakthorpe Primary School tucked into a specially created menu to mark the day
* Enfield Council urges parents to sign up to the school meals service which provides 20,000 hot meals a day
Pupils at Oakthorpe Primary School tucked into a special menu on Thursday (15 March) to mark International School Meals Day as Enfield Council urged parents to sign up to the borough’s school meals service.
Youngsters tucked into Southern Style Chicken Drumsticks, Lamb Koftas and homemade vegetarian Jamaican Pasties as well as chocolate sponge, Greek Yoghurt and fresh fruit. Children also took part in a competition asking them why it was important to use locally grown and sustainable food and to identify their favourite meal with the winner getting their favourite dish on the school’s menu.
Enfield Council’s Cabinet Member for Education, Children’s Services and Protection, Cllr Ayfer Orhan, said: “It’s vitally important that children eat well, good nutrition supports good health and eating good wholesome food helps a child’s development and aids concentration levels in the classroom.
“Enfield Catering Service serves around 20,000 meals a day of a consistently high quality which are freshly cooked on site, using high quality and ethically-sourced ingredients, so that they can provide the best possible standards of nutrition.
"For some young people their school meal is the only hot food they will have that day, so to ensure fairness for all we always serve food that is tasty, nutritious and meets their needs.”
All pupils in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 are eligible for free school meals and children from families in receipt of certain benefits or on a low income are also eligible.
The service currently provides catering for 55 primary, six special and two secondary schools in the borough.
Find out more information about school meals or email enfield.catering.services@enfield.gov.uk.
To register for free school meals you should ask at your child’s school or call the pupil benefits office on 020 8379 5367.
Enfield Catering Service has been awarded the ‘Good Egg’ award and the ‘Good Dairy’ commendation from Compassion in World Farming. Its accreditation from the Marine Stewardship Council means that it only uses sustainable fish on its menus.
They have also achieved the prestigious Soil Association’s Silver ‘Food for Life Served Here’ award ensuring ingredients are of the highest standard; freshly prepared on site, including fresh meat with high welfare accreditation, free range eggs, and some organic, seasonal and locally-sourced produce.
The menus are designed to make the best use of local and seasonal ingredients, contributing to the local economy and supporting local farms and traders. All food on the menu is free from undesirable additives, artificial sweeteners and controversial food colours and does not use GM ingredients.