Food for Life Partnership

• BRONZE criteria & guidance
• SILVER criteria & guidance
• GOLD criteria & guidance

Criteria & guidance

New changes to the criteria

We have recently asked schools what they thought about the Food for Life Partnership Bronze, Silver and Gold criteria. They told us the criteria are challenging, meaningful and lead to real impact. Some of the criteria prove particularly challenging, so to make sure that all the criteria are genuinely achievable and represent best practise we have made a number improvements.

If you would like to give us feedback, either email fflp [at] foodforlife [dot] org [dot] uk or call 0117 3145180.

The Food for Life Partnership Mark awards achievement at three levels: Bronze, Silver and Gold.

For each award, there is a set of criteria - think of these as an action framework for your school.

The criteria are centred around four areas of development:

• Food leadership
• Food quality and provenance
• Food education
• Food culture and community involvement

Bronze, Silver and Gold Marks - at a glance

• BRONZE schools serve seasonal school meals that are at least 75% freshly prepared by a well-trained school cook. Pupils and parents are involved in planning improvements to school menus and the dining experience via a school nutrition action group, boosting school meal take-up. Every pupil has the opportunity to visit a farm during his or her time at school, and opportunities are given for cooking and food growing activity.
• SILVER schools serve school meals on plates, not flight trays, and a range of locally sourced and organic items are served. All chicken, bacon and sausages served are Freedom Food certified or free range and no fish from unsustainable sources is served. The school has a cooking club, and pupils get to cook with and eat the produce grown in the school growing area. Parents and the wider community get involved in food education via food-themed events.
• GOLD schools are hubs of good food culture in their community, actively involving parents and community groups in cooking and growing activity. School meals are at least 75% freshly prepared, 50% local and 30% organic, and more than 70% of pupils are choosing to eat school meals. Every pupil learns to cook and has the opportunity to grow food, and groups of pupils are actively involved in the life of a local farm.