Research has shown that eating a wide variety of nutritious foods helps mood, attention and learning, as does eating regular meals. Mill School Bury, led by the School’s Chef Jennifer Johnstone, takes food and nutrition very seriously and as well as positively impacting pupils, it aims to positively impact the environment and local economy too. She tells us more:

“The link between good food and nutrition and learning is well known. Being hungry has a negative impact on us all, and to make sure our children are in the best possible position to be ready and able to learn, we make sure that there are regular breaks throughout the day to come together to eat.

“That starts with breakfast. We offer toast, fruit and cereal as the children arrive and that helps get them set up for the day. We break again mid-morning when there’s brunch options such as fruit loaf, crumpets or croissants available – they’re a particular favourite! There’s fruit too, which is available throughout the day. We also do healthy milkshakes which helps keep the tummies full too!

“Some of our children have different dietary preferences or needs and I make sure there’s always something on the menu for everyone. We encourage students to try new things and they have a say in how our menus are developed. I do keep things relatively predictable as that is helpful for many of our young people and they know what to expect. So for example, the main choice on a Monday is always beef based – spaghetti bolognaise, cottage pie etc.

“We also need to consider how we are describing the options to the children as some of them can be quite literal in how their interpret words. For example, cottage pie. Some of the children were asking where the pastry was! So we put a lot of thought into making sure they know what the options are and are described fully so they know what to expect.

“Quality is key too and we use local suppliers, including an award winning local butcher, to make sure we are not only contributing to the local economy but also using nothing but the very best ingredients. Using local suppliers also has a positive impact on the environment as the ingredients are travelling the shortest possible distance to get to us.

“Finally, not only do these regular, high quality meals impact the children’s mood, attention and learning but it also gives them a chance to socialise with their peers and with the adults around them. That’s incredibly important for many of our students, who might previously have struggled to form positive relationships or tolerate others.

“The children are more and more seeing mealtimes at school as something to look forward to, something they can influence and a positive way to spend time with their friends. Together we are developing different menus themed for special events such as Halloween. It’s lots of fun and encouraging the pupils to try new and different foods and cuisines.”

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