§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science why school meals are no longer required to conform to nutritional standards; what advice is available to local education authorities on the nutritional content of school meals; and what steps local education authorities and schools take to encourage pupils to eat balanced meals.
§ Sir Keith JosephBefore the Education Act 1980, under which the nutritional standards for school meals became the responsibility of local education authorities, many LEAs had represented that centrally laid down regulations were restricting their ability to provide food which reflected pupil preferences, one consequence of which was that a large amount of food was being wasted.550W Clearly uneaten food had no nutritional value. The pre-1980 Act regulations on nutrition remain available for guidance, and more up-to-date material is published by the DHSS and a range of other specialist educational and medical bodies and by LEAs themselves.
In the course of their visits, HMI has observed that schools are becoming more conscious of the need to draw attention to the importance of high fibre, low fat and reduced sugar in the diet as aspects of health education and home economics. The Department's catering adviser has also noted that many LEAs now encourage pupils to choose a balanced meal by presenting the meals in such a way that they can make sensible choices and by always providing the option of salads and fresh fruit.