GOLD criteria & guidance
Food Leadership
Food quality and provenance
(for delivery by the Caterer in partnership with the School)
Food education
Food culture and community involvement
Food Leadership
All pupils have an opportunity to sit down to lunch every day.
We would expect every pupil to have at least 30 minutes in which to sit down to eat his or her lunch.
It is important that schools set a positive example for young people and encourage them to sit down to eat lunch for long enough to have an opportunity for social interaction and good digestion. Investment in dining room facilities in schools has a poor track record, and many secondary schools in particular struggle with limited seating capacity. Until public investment through schemes such as Building Schools for the Future improves this situation, creative timetabling is needed to ensure that all pupils have an opportunity to sit down for a sufficient period at lunchtime. Staggered lunch periods for different year groups can make a difference, as can multiple serving points or cashless systems to reduce queuing times.
Take-up of school meals is >70% OR has increased >20% since the school enrolled with the Food for Life Partnership.
Take-up should be measured as an average over a half term or term. To demonstrate an increase of over 20%, an additional 20% or more of the whole pupil population should be taking school meals compared to the average for the term or half-term in which the school enrolled OR the same term or half-term in the previous year. In order to retain a Gold Mark the school will have to demonstrate that this take-up has been sustained at the two-year review.
Research by Hull University and a survey by the Food Standards Agency have also shown that, despite parents’ good intentions, pack lunches often fall short of school meals in terms of balanced nutrition. Useful strategies for increasing take-up of school meals include:
- Allowing children who eat packed lunches and children having school dinners to sit and eat together. Children tell us that they are keen to spend the lunch period with friends, so they may not want to eat school dinners if their friends on pack lunches sit elsewhere.
- Consulting parents and pupils on menu improvements.
- Holding food taster evenings for parents to try out new dishes or celebrate new menus, and inviting parents to join children on occasion for school lunches.
- Holding school dinner promotions at events for new joiners and their parents.
- Making office staff time available to help families apply.
Read the following study for more information:
The school is sharing good practice with other schools who wish to go for Gold with the Food for Life Partnership Mark.
We would expect a Food for Life Partnership Gold school to be supporting two or more other schools in making progress towards a Food for Life Partnership Mark, and to be open to taking calls and hosting visits from other interested schools.
The secret of becoming a Food for Life Partnership Gold school is not something we want you to keep to yourself! Teachers, parents or school cooks from aspiring Gold Mark schools will learn far more from exchanging ideas with a school that has learned by doing than by reading all the guidance we could provide. Flagship Schools and Communities have a commitment to sharing their learning, and are a good first port of call for interested schools to visit.
The school is working with the caterer to reduce and manage food waste.
We would expect the school to have worked with the caterer to be monitoring food waste and to adopt one or more of the following options to reduce and manage food waste:
- Implement a pre-ordering system to allow the right number of covers to be served
- Consult pupils and parents on menus and revise accordingly
- In primary schools, train lunchtime supervisors to encourage and reward pupils that clear their plates
- Compost food waste from school meals
Around one third of food grown for human consumption in the UK ends up in the rubbish bin. At least half of this is perfectly edible, and much of the other half could be composted. In the UK, the vast majority of food waste ends up in landfill. As food rots in landfill it produces methane, one of the most potent greenhouse gases. Food waste also represents a waste of money that could instead be invested in better quality ingredients.
Visit the following website for more information.
Food quality and provenance
(for delivery by the Caterer in partnership with the School)
At least 30% of ingredients are from a certified Organic or MSC-certified source.
To meet this criterion, at least 30% of your total ingredient spend over a menu rotation should be on certified Organic or MSC-certified ingredients. Fish can be counted towards the 30% target if it is organically farmed or Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified wild fish.
According to the Government, organic farming tends to deliver greater biodiversity, less pollution, less carbon dioxide emissions, better animal welfare and more local economic activity. The Sustainable Development Commission describes organic farming as the 'gold standard' for sustainable food. Overfishing has caused one-third of all fish stocks worldwide to collapse, and scientists are warning that if current trends continue all fish stocks worldwide will collapse within fifty years. The Marine Stewardship Council Fish & Kids programme is helping to make MSC-certified sustainable fish products available to schools. Almost 1,200 schools in Surrey County Council, Tower Hamlets, Hertfordshire County Council and Norfolk City Council have launched MSC menus in all their schools.
For practical guidance on sourcing local food, see our briefing on how to source local and organic ingredients below.
At least 50% of ingredients are locally sourced.
To meet this criterion, at least 50% of your total ingredient spend over a menu rotation should be on locally sourced ingredients.
To count as locally sourced, ingredients should be bought and produced within your region or any adjacent county/local authority that falls outside your region. For instance, a school or caterer in Dorset could source ingredients from anywhere in the South West and also from Hampshire. If you are unsure which counties are in each region, find out more in the regional section of this site.
In making sourcing decisions we would encourage you to give consideration to the following questions:
1. Do you know on which farm the food was produced?
2. Is the food being produced, processed and packed as close as possible?
3. How can you be confident that the food is produced in a way that respects the environment and animal welfare? Is the producer happy for you to visit to make sure?
4. How can you be confident that your payment will benefit the local economy? Have you taken opportunities to source direct from local producers?
Any of these considerations may, in agreed circumstances, be accepted as a valid justification for counting produce sourced a limited distance outside your region or adjacent county towards the 50% target.
For practical guidance on sourcing local food, see our briefing on how to source local and organic ingredients below.
Certified Organic meat, dairy products or eggs feature on the menu as animal welfare best practice.
We would expect, as a minimum, to see organic meat, milk, cheese, yoghurt OR eggs highlighted on the school menu once a week.
For climate change, health and animal welfare reasons, it is desirable that we shift as a society towards eating less but better quality meat. All animals on organic farms live in free-range systems and are encouraged to roam outdoors and express their natural behaviour. According to leading animal welfare organisation, Compassion in World Farming, organic farming has the potential to offer the very highest standards of animal welfare and the Soil Association’s welfare standards are leaders in the field. The Soil Association insists on higher welfare standards for organic poultry than most other organic certifiers.
For further detailed guidance, see our briefing on frequently asked questions on animal welfare assurance schemes below.
Steps are being taken to increase the take-up of non-meat dishes, to promote a balanced, sustainable diet.
Steps that can be taken to familiarise all pupils with some non-meat dishes as part of a balanced diet include: trialling meat-free days; making popular vegetable-based dishes the principal dish of the day alongside less popular dishes; setting targets for increasing the number of vegetarian covers served; and reducing meat portion sizes within nutritionally balanced recipes.
According to the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation, meat consumption accounts for 18% of global greenhouse gas emissions. This is due to methane emissions from cattle and forest clearance to grow animal feed for intensive farming, as well as the nitrous oxide emissions from fertiliser use to grow this feed. Switching to a more plant-based diet and eating less but better quality meat would make our diets more climate-friendly. The World Health Organisation and World Cancer Research Fund also recommend eating meat in moderation, while eating more fruit and vegetables and starchy wholefoods, to reduce saturated fat consumption and to minimise bowel cancer risk. Serving less meat also enables you to invest in better quality for pupils ie free range or organic meat.
Food education
The school is committed to providing a minimum of 12 hours of cooking lessons a year by 2011 for all pupils up to key stage 3.
From 2011, the statutory requirement at key stage 3 will be for 24 hours of cooking lessons over 3 years. We would expect schools to commit to a Gold standard provision of 12 hours a year or more of cooking lessons for key stages 1,2 and 3 by 2011, while recognising that exam commitments preclude such a commitment at key stage 4. Pupils in primary schools should be taught basic cooking skills, including safe techniques for the use of sharp knives. They should be introduced to a range of familiar and less familiar ingredients and taught to make simple nutritious dishes that can form part of healthy meals. Secondary students should be taught to develop and hone the basics learned during their primary years, so that no student leaves school without knowledge of the foundation recipes and a repertoire of at least ten nutritious and affordable dishes.
More than two thirds of children say that they would like to learn to cook. Children take delight in the miracle of food creation. Sadly, however, most twenty-first-century children’s cooking knowledge is limited to putting together meals or snacks from pre-prepared ingredients, and their understanding of the cooking process confined mainly to what a microwave can do in seconds. Every opportunity should be given for children to develop their cooking skills so that they can prepare balanced meals independently and with confidence. Children deserve to learn how to feed themselves well and appreciate the benefits of cooking good food.
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Guidance on cooking at Gold
(pdf, 215KB)
All pupils are given the opportunity to participate in organic food growing during their time at the school.
In primary schools, growing activities should be a regular part of curriculum planning and school life. Opportunities should go wider than a module of work in one-year group and it would not be sufficient to have an after-school gardening club open to all pupils. Secondary schools should ensure that organic food growing is integrated into all appropriate curriculum areas and provide a growing club open to all pupils. If possible, students will have their own growing area, no matter how small.
While it may not be feasible for all pupils in a school to be actively involved in food growing activity at any one time, we would expect all pupils to have been given the opportunity to participate at some time during their school lives. Using the school garden as a basis for science, maths or English language classes, or enlisting year groups to help in the harvest and preparation of school garden produce for a soup sale or cooking class are some ways to involve larger numbers. All pupils will benefit from food growing becoming an integral part of school life. Not only is food growing an effective way of promoting healthier diets and lifestyles, and engaging any pupils who may be disengaged from classroom learning, it is also key to developing pupils’ understanding of food provenance and the implications for the environment and their own health.
The school actively involves pupils in planning the food growing calendar and maintaining the growing area using organic practices.
We would expect schools to be able to demonstrate that pupils are actively involved in planning what is to be sown and harvested, and when, rather than this being planned on their behalf by a teacher.
Pupils should have sufficient knowledge and understanding of food growing and organic principles to be able to plan the food-growing calendar and maintain the growing area organically.Pupils will gain maximum benefit if they can experience the full growing cycle and grow a range of seasonal food all year round. Sowing early and late varieties, succession sowing and providing some protection during the harshest of weather conditions can achieve this. Using organic practices will allow young people to become aware of the detailed and intricate ways in which all living things are connected, and that growing organically means working in harmony with nature.
Visit the following websites for more information.
- Garden Organic Teaching Zone
- Garden Organic Learning Zone
- Duchy Originals Garden Organic for Schools 'How does your garden grow?' competition
Pupils are given the opportunity to take part in a programme of farm-based activities throughout the farming year.
At Gold level, we would expect pupils involved in the school’s farm links programme to be actively involved in carrying out tasks around the farm. This hands-on participation will maximise the learning and rewards to pupils, and demonstrate a range of jobs that are carried out on farms. In secondary schools this will provide an amazing opportunity to introduce pupils to farming as a career option.
Activities might include the following: Feeding animals, cleaning out animals’ housing and putting in clean bedding, collecting eggs, grinding wheat to make flour, milking a cow, planting, weeding and harvesting crops, dry stone walling, stacking wood and clearing streams. All pupils will benefit from using their bodies for physical work, and learning new practical skills. Obviously there are additional health and safety considerations, but if pupils work in closely supervised groups with a fully trained member of the farm staff, then these activities would be no more risky than cooking or wood work classes in school. All of this work will be linked to the farming calendar and getting involved will enable pupils to become more connected with the farm and its annual cycle.
Food culture and community involvement
There is active involvement of parents and the wider community in school growing and cooking activities
We would expect schools to be inviting parents and/or community members to help organise, contribute to, and attend growing and cooking activities. Schools should be able to demonstrate a good level of response to such invitations.
Innovative ways of integrating parents, local residents and other members of the community can prove a real challenge, and schools will need to be creative and persistent in their efforts. However, if successful, the rewards are great. Forging strong school-home and school-community links is a key focus of current education policy, and with good reason. Pupils’ achievements have been shown to be greater where parents and the wider community are actively involved in school life. A school that draws in members of the community, from all walks of life, is an enriching and vibrant place. People are always happy to share memories and knowledge with others. Different members of the community can bring food culture to life for pupils, from the older generation relaying stories of how they coped with food rationing during the war, to multicultural groups bringing knowledge of the diversity of tropical food that we can grow and cook with in this country.
Visit the website below for more information.
Parents can buy or collect organic and/or local produce at the school, or are signposted to an alternative local outlet
We would expect schools to be actively signposting parents to existing outlets for local and organic produce if the decision is taken not to compete with an existing scheme.
Schools can be a drop-off point for local organic vegetable box deliveries, for parents to buy when they pick children up from school. Box schemes are a great way to learn about what’s in season, and are often more affordable than buying organic or even non-organic produce at the supermarket. Please note, if there is an existing local and organic food retailer or box scheme drop-off point in the community, schools should judge whether an additional service is needed within the community.
Visit these websites to find out more.
- Box schemes in your area
- Abel & Cole Farmer’s Choice box scheme for schools
- Soil Association Organic Directory
Food and cooking education is available in school to parents and community members out of school hours.
We would expect schools to be offering classes in practical food education, including cooking, for parents and the wider community at least once a term. We suggest you link with your local college, which may be able to offer further advice and support adult learning.
Schools can have a positive influence on pupils’ diets outside school, and the health of the wider community, by offering opportunities for parents and community groups to develop cooking or growing skills using school facilities out of school hours.
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Cooking Skills in Schools: Kitchen Safety and Hygiene
(pdf, 145KB) -
Cooking Skills in Schools: Risk Assessment Pro forma
(pdf, 176KB) -
Cooking Skills in Schools: Basic Knife Skills
(pdf, 146KB) -
Cooking Skills in Schools: Shopping and Advance Preparation
(pdf, 144KB) -
Going for Balance: A guide to maintaining a balanced diet
(pdf, 159KB)
Get in touch
If you would like to learn more about the Food for Life Partnership or have any questions, please contact us.