Food for Life Partnership

FFLP

Food for Life Partnership

The Food for Life Partnership (FFLP) is a national organisation working with schools and communities to revolutionise school meals, reconnect children and young people with where their food comes from, and inspire families to cook and grow food. The aims of FFLP closely match our own. We have always worked closely with our catering providers Eden to ensure school mealtimes are an enjoyable and healthy experience for our students.  Across the curriculum food education is recognised as vitally important to our students so they can make healthy choices on diet and eating habits that will serve them well throughout their lives. Food continues to thrive as a subject and is hugely popular as an option at key stage 4, amongst other curriculum areas science and life skills devote lessons to food education. We have also worked closely with the community to develop knowledge and skills in food sourcing and preparation, and understanding around the wider issues of diets and the food industry through our Pass-it-on project and Eco Days. We have an allotment on the site with many students involved in growing seasonal produce that is used in dishes in school meals.

A school nutrition action group has been formed called TLE SNAP! (The Long Eaton School Nutrition Action Panel). This group is made up of members of teaching staff who are involved in food education, a representative from Eden and a community liaison person. TLE SNAP meet on a regular basis to review the current provision for mealtimes in the school, the food education in the curriculum and community projects. Areas for development are identified and TLE SNAP! work to implement changes and new projects. More details about the project areas in the school are given in the FLLP section on the website.

·         The Food for Life Partnership is led by the Soil Association, working with partners Health Education Trust, Garden Organic and Focus on Food.

·         The programme was established in 2007 with five years of funding (£16.9 million) from the BIG lottery.

·         In March 2012, it received a further £1 million in transition funding from BIG to support its transition towards a locally commissioned model, working to address key public health objectives.

·         As of October 2012, it has been commissioned in six areas; Lincolnshire, Calderdale, Devon, Kirklees, Warwickshire and Bath & North East Somerset.

·         Over 4,400 schools are enrolled in the programme nationally.

·         Over 560,000 Food for Life Catering Mark accredited meals are served in schools every day.

·         Since the programme’s inception, 658 schools have been awarded Bronze, 132 have been awarded Silver and 19 have been awarded Gold.

The FFLP aims to improve healthy eating and food awareness among children and young people. It does so by creating a positive food culture within schools, and for this impact to cascade into home environments, by supporting schools to serve fresh, seasonal and ethically sourced food and to deliver a programme of activities which educate young people about nutrition and food provenance issues through a range of activities.  

The FFLP is a school-based initiative located within a broader range of policy-led activity related to healthy eating and sustainable development in the UK. It includes a national award scheme for any school committed to transforming their food culture and rewards step-by-step progress by schools and caterers for food quality and education. The organisations involved in the Partnership are the Soil Association, Health Education Trust, Garden Organic and the Focus on Food Campaign. The FFLP is funded by the BIG Lottery fund until March 2012.  

At the time of writing this report, FFLP had successfully enrolled 3600 schools, These schools received a range of materials to assist them in promoting practical food education including posters, recipe cards, DVDs, cooking and growing resources, access to advice lines, invitations to workshops, as well as a listing in the Partnerships online schools database, a personal webpage and access to national and regional networks. The Partnership offers an award scheme to acknowledge progress towards excellence. Schools report their progress against Bronze and Silver assessment criteria and complete an application form, but the Gold mark requires an external assessment by FFLP. Schools joining the FFLP commit to achieving a Bronze mark or higher within two years.  

By July 2010, the FFLP had granted 109 of these schools „Flagship‟ status and aimed to recruit a total of 180. Flagship schools have been identified as having demonstrated an advanced level of awareness and commitment to food culture and education and, therefore, receive an additional level of support and funding from the FFLP which intends to fast-track them towards Gold award status. In return they are expected to act as role models for Partnership schools and disseminate their ideas and experiences.