Trust backs policy on junk food temptation

Mr Balls said that there is no point banning junk food in schools if teenagers can go to local unhealthy fast food shops which are cheaper than the school canteen, according to The Times. He also stated that councils should be using their power to ban fast food outlets from opening close to schools and teachers should be preventing children leaving the premises during lunch breaks. Earlier this year, the Trust published the nation's first ever junk food temptation league table. The research highlighted the most and least tempting local education authorities to go to school in, by ranking all 149 authorities by the number of junk food outlets that exist per secondary school in that area. It was only last week that Waltham Forest council opened a public consultation that would limit the amount of fast food restaurants opening within the vicinity of schools. Speaking at the launch of the public consultation, Council Leader Cllr Clyde Loakes said: "There are more than enough fast food outlets in this borough and we want to stop any more from opening. Our residents have told us that these types of rules are important for the future of the borough. The bottom line is that residents simply don't have enough choice because of the number of fast food takeaways – we don't want to tell them how to live their lives but we do want to give them the widest possible choice in what they can eat." Judy Hargadon, Chief Executive of the School Food Trust, said the time had come to take action on the issue: "Caterers have worked tirelessly to overhaul school meals and this is being undermined by the myriad of cheap junk food on offer just outside the school gates, all in rush to grab pupils' dinner money. As long as action is taken hand in hand with local authorities, pupils and parents, this would help level the playing field for school canteens. Mr Balls commented at a Healthy Eating in Schools conference in London: "We've made huge progress on school food but what goes on outside the school gates is as important as what happens inside. "Schools, parents and local authorities all need to be working together to make sure our children and teenagers get the kind of healthy food that will set them up for success in life." The School Food Trust is backing local authorities who limit the number of licenses granted to junk food outlets close to schools, building on the obesity strategy: Healthy Weight, Healthy Lives: A cross Government Strategy for England – which called on Local Authorities to consider creating healthy food zones around schools in which junk food outlets were limited. Hargadon continued: "The School Food Trust is thrilled that Waltham City Council has made the bold move to restrict takeaways near schools. Our own research has shown this is a real problem in many areas across the UK and has exposed the number of junk food hot spots that schools have to compete with on a daily basis. With schools working really hard it is vital that their efforts are not being undermined by junk food outside the gates and we applaud Waltham City Council for tackling this issue." Another option the Trust also recommends is that schools look into the feasibility of adopting a 'stay-on-site policy' restricting pupils to school grounds during lunch times, thus keeping them away from tempting junk food meal deals. Separate research released by the Trust, carried out in conjunction with Tick Box, suggests that 90% of parents thought schools should adopt a stay on site policy, with 67% agreeing that children would eat more healthily if they were not allowed to leave school at lunch time.