Over 1,000 pupils at Eastbrook School get taste for free school dinners

National School Meals Week (9th – 13th November) is an annual event organised by the Local Authority Caterers Association (LACA), with the support of the School Food Trust, to promote the importance of healthy eating to young children and encourage more pupils to eat school meals. The free meals were provided to all 1,150 pupils at Eastbrook School by Pasta King, a foodservice supplier to schools. The provision of free meals aims to encourage students to opt for healthy options at lunchtime and prove that nutritious food can be popular with pupils. Valerie Dennis, headteacher at Eastbrook School said: "Out of the school's 1,150 pupils 400 have school lunches and of these pupils 200 qualify for free school meals. We would like to see more students eating school lunches as we know that a nutritional balanced diet plays an important role in health, intellectual development and behaviour. Initiatives like this help the school, the students and their parents to think about this together." Beverly Baker, chair of LACA, said: "We champion any initiative that encourages the uptake of hearty lunchtime meals in schools. The decision to give away free meals to youngsters in Dagenham is very much in keeping with the spirit of National School Meals Week. It gives youngsters the chance to see that school meals can be both tasty and healthy." Sue Davenport, managing director of Pasta King added: "Pupils in schools across the country will have been learning about the positive benefits of healthy eating in lessons. However, there is no substitute for actually getting to taste a healthy meal. "We were therefore pleased to be able to offer every single pupil at Eastbrook School a healthy, nutritious pasta meal. It was a great opportunity to demonstrate to young people that good quality food can be tasty and enjoyable."