Wokingham

Pupils at Gorse Ride Junior School in Finchampstead, Wokingham will be enjoying a ‘pukka’ Christmas lunch next week (December 11) thanks to Wokingham District Council’s successful new catering contract.

Over 180 pupils and 19 teachers will be tucking into a fresh, healthy and tasty Christmas lunch of turkey, roast potatoes, peas and carrots, with a vegetarian option also available to those pupils who choose not to eat meat. Dinner will be rounded off with a yuletide brownie, fresh fruit and a novelty Christmas biscuit. All meals, including the Christmas menu, are freshly cooked using produce from local suppliers in the south of England including Berkshire. And, school meals at Gorse Ride Junior School are cooked by four catering staff in the school kitchen.

Gorse Ride Junior School is one of 56 schools who are part of Wokingham District Council’s school meal contract. The council has seen the take-up of school meals increase by eight per cent since it introduced a new menu and new contract in September with Tunbridge Wells-based company Edwards & Ward. And at Gorse Ride Junior, the increase in take-up is even higher with over 300 extra meals being served each month so far, bucking the national trend.

Cllr Rob Stanton, executive member for Wokingham corporate services, said: “I am delighted to join the festive feast at Gorse Ride Junior School next week. It promises to be a fresh, tasty and nutritious meal and I am very much looking forward to hearing at first hand how much the pupils are enjoying their lunches. More and more pupils at Gorse Ride Junior School, along with many hundreds across the district, are reaping the benefits of the new menu which includes fresh meat, vegetables and organic produce.

“Since the new contact started in September, we have been monitoring the meal take-up and many of the district’s pupils are choosing to have a school meal at lunchtime which is in contrast to the national picture where the uptake is declining. A staggering 70,000 meals are being cooked in our school kitchens every month by dedicated catering staff. I am delighted to see that we are bucking the national trend and this increased take-up is a significant achievement for everyone involved.”

Sarah Phillips, headteacher at Gorse Ride Junior School, said: “We are all looking forward to starting our Christmas celebrations with the children and staff sharing lunch together. The fresh produce now on offer through school meals has been well received by our children with many requesting more! This is testimony to the improved service and efforts of our invaluable catering team.”

Under the new contract arrangements, the council exceeds new government nutritional guidelines by providing fresh food that is cooked by the catering staff in 38 school kitchens across the district. Those schools who are part of the school meal contract but do not have a kitchen, have their meals cooked freshly by a neighbouring school.

Wokingham District Council