The Wokingham Lunch Bunch Club
Some seven months into the new school meal contract, Wokingham Borough Council is today celebrating an 8% per cent increase in the take-up of school meals since September 2006.
A new Wokingham menu has been launched this term and features the scrumptious delights of organic fishcakes, sweet and sour pork, vegetarian cottage pie, chilli and roast pork to name just a few. Every day the pupils tuck into salad and fruit salads meaning that many pupils now enjoy their five pieces of fruit or vegetables a day. And if that wasn’t tempting enough for pupils, homemade bread is also available everyday. School meals are freshly cooked using organic vegetables and meat products from local suppliers in the south of England including Berkshire.
Wokingham council introduced a new menu and new contract in September 2006 with Tunbridge Wells-based company Edwards & Ward. Parents have been given a leaflet which lists what is on the menu each day. Organic sausages and homemade cheese and tomato flan are a firm favourite amongst the pupils and they also get to sample cuisine from around the world including Mexican-style chicken and curry.
There are 56 schools in the Wokingham borough who are part of the school meal contract. All have seen increases in take-up, but some have seen large rises including: Hatch Ride Primary School with an 89% increase and Robert Piggott Infant School with a 65% increase.
Rachael Maughan, Wokingham procurement officer and contracts team leader, said: “The council continues to find fresh and interesting ways to engage pupils in healthy eating. We are delighted with the up-take in school meals this academic year and this impressive increase sends the council a clear message that pupils are really enjoying the new menus introduced this term.
“School meals have come along way over the past year and the pupils are reaping the benefits of tasty and nutritious food.”
Headteacher at Hatch Ride Primary School Tracy Frackelton said: “I am delighted with the improvement in the quality of the meals we are serving up to our children everyday - even the staff are tucking in!”
Mike Ward, joint managing director at Edwards & Ward, said: “We have been overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and efforts of all our catering teams who have responded so positively to the new menus and a return to healthy fresh ingredients. Every day they transform these ingredients into the healthy lunches that are proving so popular throughout the Wokingham borough’s schools and they are seeing a month-on-month increase in the number of pupils choosing to have a school lunch rather than a packed-lunch."
Under the new contract arrangements, Wokingham council exceeds new government nutritional guidelines by providing fresh food that is cooked by the catering staff in 38 school kitchens across the borough. 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.
A new Wokingham menu has been launched this term and features the scrumptious delights of organic fishcakes, sweet and sour pork, vegetarian cottage pie, chilli and roast pork to name just a few. Every day the pupils tuck into salad and fruit salads meaning that many pupils now enjoy their five pieces of fruit or vegetables a day. And if that wasn’t tempting enough for pupils, homemade bread is also available everyday. School meals are freshly cooked using organic vegetables and meat products from local suppliers in the south of England including Berkshire.
Wokingham council introduced a new menu and new contract in September 2006 with Tunbridge Wells-based company Edwards & Ward. Parents have been given a leaflet which lists what is on the menu each day. Organic sausages and homemade cheese and tomato flan are a firm favourite amongst the pupils and they also get to sample cuisine from around the world including Mexican-style chicken and curry.
There are 56 schools in the Wokingham borough who are part of the school meal contract. All have seen increases in take-up, but some have seen large rises including: Hatch Ride Primary School with an 89% increase and Robert Piggott Infant School with a 65% increase.
Rachael Maughan, Wokingham procurement officer and contracts team leader, said: “The council continues to find fresh and interesting ways to engage pupils in healthy eating. We are delighted with the up-take in school meals this academic year and this impressive increase sends the council a clear message that pupils are really enjoying the new menus introduced this term.
“School meals have come along way over the past year and the pupils are reaping the benefits of tasty and nutritious food.”
Headteacher at Hatch Ride Primary School Tracy Frackelton said: “I am delighted with the improvement in the quality of the meals we are serving up to our children everyday - even the staff are tucking in!”
Mike Ward, joint managing director at Edwards & Ward, said: “We have been overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and efforts of all our catering teams who have responded so positively to the new menus and a return to healthy fresh ingredients. Every day they transform these ingredients into the healthy lunches that are proving so popular throughout the Wokingham borough’s schools and they are seeing a month-on-month increase in the number of pupils choosing to have a school lunch rather than a packed-lunch."
Under the new contract arrangements, Wokingham council exceeds new government nutritional guidelines by providing fresh food that is cooked by the catering staff in 38 school kitchens across the borough. 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 Borough Council
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