National School Meals Week launches today

NSMW, which runs until 12 November, is organised by the Local Authority Caterers Association (LACA) to promote healthy and nutritious school meals to parents, teachers and children across England and Wales. LACA estimates that about 17,000 schools will be adopting at least one of the five themes during the week. The five themes for the week are: Get Eating on Monday with Britain's Biggest School Lunch; Get Supporting Day on Tuesday 9th where hotels, restaurants and pubs can work with schools to generate a greater interest in food. Schools can also download videos filmed at Chewton Glen that show children how to make a healthy fruit smoothie and lay up a table in their restaurant. On Wednesday it is Get Dancing Day when pupils can watch youth dance teacher Hannah Bayston create a dance routine that will build up an appetite for a school lunch. Thursday is Remembrance Day when pupils will be able to hear memories from people that had a school meal in the 1940s and see recipes from that time and the week ends with Get Giggling Day when pupils can download food masks or make their own. Sandra Russell, chair of LACA said: "National School Meals Week has been held and organised by LACA since 1993 and is one of the biggest healthy eating promotions in the country. We have nearly 100 local authorities registered online so this will make it the biggest yet and our 1200 members have all sorts of promotions and activities planned. "I wish them every success with the week and I am sure that even more young people will be enjoying a school meal in the months ahead. School meals play a vital part in the whole school day and I must thank all the Headteachers that give us such fantastic support. Where school caterers have good engagement with a Headteacher there is a thriving service that brings real benefit to everyone in the school."