There are too few incentives for key players in the school food system to focus on nutrition. We're joining many partners in highlighting to the PM the urgent need for reform around free school meals so that children’s health is put first. @ImpUrbanHealth https://foodfoundation.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/For-the-Attention-of-PM-Boris-Johnson-pdf.pdf

Sadly this is by no means a new issue. We researched school food across a London borough to better understand what children are actually being served every day. What we found was that mandatory School Food Standards existed on paper but not on plates /2 https://urbanhealth.org.uk/insights/reports/serving-up-childrens-health

We found a postcode lottery in the quality of school food our children are eating. Improving the quality of food benefits all children and is an important lever to close the gaps in health outcomes between kids from the lowest-income households and those from the highest /3

We also found that complex funding structures for school food, combined with a lack of national guidance on good procurement and any monitoring of School Food Standards at a school level, means saving money is often prioritised by caterers and schools over children’s health /4

At the same time, we found great examples of innovative techniques to design food and canteens that make healthy food options the most affordable and tasty. What we need is for the system to incentivise this kind of practice, so that it's not the exception but the rule 5/5

cc: @Food_Foundation @sfmtweet @ChefsinSchools @HenryDimbleby @MarcusRashford @jamieoliver @me_sarahhelena @LDNchildobesity @food_strategy @jogideon