Assessing the company’s sustainable and social activities, the SRA gave a total score of 70%, having scored 100% in healthy eating, 99% in community involvement and 90% in waste management. Marked across three pillars of sustainability, the caterer reached 97% in Society, 67% in Environment and 57% in Sourcing.
Kate Martin, managing partner of The Brookwood Partnership, said: “Providing in excess of 60,000 fresh meals each school day is no mean feat and we continually look at ways to reduce any negative effect our work has on the environment.
“It is with great pride that we have been awarded this accreditation and in being the first schools’ caterer. I am continually proud of the lengths our teams go to each day in order to help protect the environment and give something back to others.”
The company has previously used their ‘Wasteless’ initiative to reduce plate waste by 47% and their employees have raised in excess of £120,000 for charity.
The caterer also uses local suppliers for specific produce which helped them score well in the sourcing category. Kent-based sites use a local farm for vegetables, a pork farm in Stamford is used for the supply of pork, garden leaves are purchased from a farm in Surrey, local dairies are used throughout the business for the supply of milk and cheese and all meat bought is British with the exception of New Zealand lamb.
Mark Linehan, Managing Director of the SRA, said: “Enabling schoolchildren to eat healthy, well sourced food sets a standard which we believe will set them up for the rest of their lives, as healthy adults equipped to make responsible decisions about what and where they eat."
The Brookwood Partnership, established in 1996, operates in 158 sites across the UK and produces in excess of 60,000 fresh meals each school day. Brookwood provides catering for independent schools and ABsolutely Catering provides catering for state schools.