30 September 2025
Since 2017, Food for Life, in partnership with Walsall Council, has been driving a powerful food transformation across the borough. With Walsall facing challegnes around cost of living and access to healthy food, the council recognised that real change requires a joined-up approach to the whole food system.
Here’s how Food for Life and the Soil Association are helping reshape Walsall’s food landscape, from school kitchens to community centres, and everywhere in between.
Transforming Food Environments in Schools and Nurseries
Food for Life initially focused on working with primary schools, nurseries, and caterers to improve food quality and education for children. As of Septermber 2025
81 schools have enrolled in the programme
47 schools and early years have achived a Food for Life Award
Over 19,000 children are now experiencing healthier food in school and early years settings
161 teachers and early years practitioners have been trained
These educators are now empowered to shape their own food environments, nurturing not only healthier children, but more food-literate future citizens.
Building Resilient and Sustainable Supply Chains
The programme’s focus has grown beyond education settings. It now includes support for local food businesses and providers to help build resilient, sustainable supply chains.
We’re working closely with partners such as Walsall Council Catering Services, Walsall College and Walsall Arboretum Café - who collectively serve over 10,000 mails daily.
Our Food for Life Served Here catering certification team continues to support school caterers, including Walsall Council Caterers, Sodexo, Chartwells, Shire, and Aspens, as they work toward achieving the Food for Life Served Here Bronze Award. With our Cool Food Pro environmental calculator is helping these caterers reduce their carbon footprint and increase use of local, high-quality produce.
Empowering Community Changemakers
A major focus of the 2024–2027 commission is community leadership, building local capacity to lead food system change from the ground up.
In the first year, eight participants completed our My Food Community leadership development programme, gaining the tools and connections to become champions for good food in their communities. Thanks to additional funding from Dentons Solicitors, these changemakers also received action grants to bring their ideas to life, leading to:
The creation of seed libraries
Budget cooking workshops
Cross-cultural recipe sharing sessions for women from different backgrounds
We also launched a brand new initiative: the Nourishing Communities Award. This celebrates local organisations that are making good food accessible through growing projects, cooking classes, and food system improvements. So far, 10 groups, from Scout to family hubs, have received the award, with 20 more applications already submitted. In addition to this there is also a small grant programme est up to support community groups deliver cooking and growing activities for Walsall residents.
Walsall's My Food Community leadership development group
A Whole-System Approach to Food Policy
In January 2024, Food for Life brought together more than 60 stakeholders at the Walsall Food Summit to co-create a new vision for food in Walsall.
The key take away from this was the need for partnership working. Building on the food plan from Wasall Public Health team, it’s clear that a whole-system food policy, that connects health, sustainability, and community in a shared mission is needed.
With support from the Soil Association, Walsall is now forming a food partnership and working towards becoming a Sustainable Food Place, cementing its commitment to building a healthier, fairer, and more sustainable food system for all.
Whether it’s children learning where their food comes from, caterers reducing their environmental impact, or communities sharing meals and stories. Walsall is proving that food can be a powerful force for positive change, for climate, nature and health.
Over the last seven years, Food for Life has worked alongside Walsall Council and local partners to test, learn, and build practical solutions for a healthier food system in schools, nurseries, food provision, community centres and more. We're in this for the long-haul as we know that real change can't come from overnight fixes, but small, connected changes that add up to something bigger, stronger and longer lasting for everyone in Walsall.