§ Mr. SheermanTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether food skills training is provided in primary school teachers' initial teacher training. [187458]
§ Mr. MilibandAll trainee teachers must demonstrate the standards set out in "Qualifying to teach", which rep#esent the minimum that trainees must know, understand and be able to do to be awarded qualified teacher status. Although the standards as they apply to 989W primary school trainees do not specify food skills training, they require that they should be familiar with the National Curriculum Framework for personal, social and health education, which at Key Stage 2 includes teaching about the benefits of healthy eating. Once employed within schools, teachers can look to professional development programmes to develop food technology skills.
§ Mr. SheermanTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what action is being taken to help primary school teachers to teach cookery in addition to the Food in Schools programme; [187459]
(2) what action his Department is taking to improve food education in schools; [187460]
(3) how many primary schools have the (a) necessary equipment and (b) purpose built facilities to enable pupils to prepare and cook food; [187461]
(4) how much schools have spent on average for each pupil in each of the last 10 years on food education in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools. [187462]
§ Mr. Stephen TwiggOn 6 September, the Government published the Healthy Living Blueprint for Schools. A copy is being placed in the House of Commons Library. The Blueprint and a supporting website will help teachers access support, advice and information to create a healthy school environment. It includes food education within the National Curriculum, and wider opportunities through, for example, cookery and growing clubs.
In addition to the Food in Schools programme, there are food technology teachers in Technology Specialist Schools and food technology Advanced Skills Teachers who support their feeder primary schools in food education as part of their outreach work.
The Department does not collect detailed information about expenditure on equipment or per pupil for individual subjects; or on facilities for food education in primary schools. This year, the Government have increased its support for capital investment in schools to £4.5 billion. This includes direct capital funding to every primary school, which a school could allocate for food technology facilities.