New guide launches to make lunch time easy for kids

More than 12,000 pupils starting year seven in September across England will receive the guide from the School Food Trust – the organisation responsible for transforming school food and food skills - following national research which found that children often report feeling overwhelmed in the canteen as they start secondary school. A study commissioned by the Trust found that lunchtime is just one of the many new experiences that can leave children feeling anxious as they make the transition to year seven. The guide, 'Secondary School Meals, Eat Better Do Better', aims to make the transition easier by explaining what new pupils and their parents and carers can expect from lunchtime at the new school. Self service options including sandwich and jacket potato bars, meal deals and friendly staff, secondary school dining rooms are a chance for children to take time out from their new timetable and eat good food with friends. Kirsten Bolton, senior marketing manager at the School Food Trust, said: "It's easy for a child going up to secondary school to feel worried about noisy canteens, which tend to be bigger and busier than at primary school, but we hope this guide will bust some of the myths and encourage children to try the great food on offer. "If we can encourage Year 7's to give school lunches a try this September, we're on the right track to keep them coming back for more." Local authorities in Bristol, Milton Keynes, North Somerset, Sunderland, Darlington, Stockton, Waltham Forest and Worcestershire are distributing the guides to pupils at the start of term.