HES 29 - ContinYou Cymru (Saesneg yn unig)
Response from ContinYou Cymru to the Proposed Healthy Eating in Schools Measure
ContinYou Cymru
ContinYou Cymru
ContinYou Cymru delivers a range of programmes, projects and services across Wales including:
A support service for Community Focused Schools and out of school hour slearning funded by WAG
The Cymru Cooks programme promoting cooking in schools through training and a Tool Kit funded by WAG
Breakfast Clubs – we support the primary breakfast programme in Wales through partnership working with WAG and our UK wide Breakfast Club network www.breakfastclubplus.org.uk
The Questions
Is there a need for an Assembly Measure to promote healthy eating in schools in view of existing initiatives within this policy area?
The ‘Appetite for Life Action Plan’ sets out the strategic direction and actions required to improve the nutritional standards of food in schools. The key issue is supporting and enabling those involved to actually do things differently to make things happen. This is a s much about winning ’hearts and minds’ as a legislative framework. Changes to the provision of food in schools will not on its own make children more healthy. The work if the ‘Healthy Schools Initiative’ is also doing much to change attitudes to food and healthy living. There is a need to promote and enable healthier eating within families and wider communities. An Assembly Measure may assist in making things happen but will not be sufficient on its own.
Do you support the key provisions set out in the measure, i.e. What are the practical implications of putting these provisions in place?
There is a need to have an understanding and recognition that for many individuals and in many communities there is a ‘continuum’ for healthy eating and that it is about moving towards healthy eating in a way that is acceptable and meaningful and will result in lasting changes and not just during school meals. The reality is that for many children and young people their experiences of food in the home and community will be different to those healthy experiences in school and may take time to be embraced. Without a family and community understanding and support change is unlikely to be sustained. Guidance, advice and funding for solutions within communities and not just schools should be available.
As more schools develop their community focus and provide a growing range of activities, opportunities and services, not only for their pupils but for families and the wider community there will be additional practical challenges to ensuring that a healthy eating message is promoted. There needs to be support and guidance for schools in how they can best develop and deliver this approach.
There must be an understanding and recognition that schools cannot and should not be doing this all themselves and that just addressing school food is not sufficient. There has to be a partnership and strategic approach that goes far wider than the provision of school food and the traditional school day.
If Estyn are to be required to report on school food then there will be a need for inspectors to fully understand the context, implications and challenges that schools, families and the wider community face.
Are there further provisions that you would like to see added to the proposed Assembly Measure?
There could be something that recognises the role of families and the wider community and ensuring that all programmes working in this area are joined up and use best practice to inform delivery. For example additional research that looks at the choices that are made within the family and community settings, and the availability of a range of healthy options within communities, would add value to this agenda.
Do you think the proposed Assembly Measure will achieve its overall purpose and aim, i.e. to enable a holistic, comprehensive ‘made in Wales’ policy on nutrition in schools to be developed and implemented?
It will be part of the bigger picture. The main challenge will be ‘hearts and minds’ and seeing this in the context of wider issues, development and delivery. Our experience of supporting a range of healthy eating interventions at a country, national, regional and local level indicates the need to identify champions and ambassadors at all levels and to have cohesive strategic approaches at all levels.
ContinYou Cymru is in a unique position to add value to such approaches through the experience, skills and partnerships already forged and through its effective delivery of related programmes such as Community Focused Schools.
