Education Business

Just as you have to think a bit smarter in the kitchen at home, the same is true in the school kitchen. But thinking about what you cook, where it is sourced and how you can be more efficient when it comes to power and waste may have some positive knock-on effects felt far further than the budget.
    
With the introduction of healthy, nutritionally balanced school meals inevitably came an increase in ingredient and labour costs as caterers strived to provide over three million tasty and healthy meals a day. For a large majority these meals are prepared on site, from fresh ingredients, for the first time in decades.  

Sustainability
This is at the same time as the ‘green agenda’ quickens pace and we are all being encouraged to be more ecologically sound. With an annual expenditure on school food somewhere in the region of £1.2 billion school food has drawn attention from organisations concerned with public sector efficiency and those with an interest in the environmental, social and economic impacts, i.e. the sustainability of the school food supply chain.
    
The Government’s efficiency agenda stems from the report ‘Releasing Resources to the Frontline’ (2004), which is commonly referred to as the Gershon Review after its principle author. This report identified opportunities for schools and local authorities to make significant efficiency gains, whilst preserving or enhancing the quality of front line delivery.  The 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review requires local government and schools to deliver three per cent annual cashable efficiencies over the period 2008-11. Whilst CSR07 makes no specific reference to school meals and earlier National Audit Office study ‘ Smarter food procurement in the public sector’ (2006), estimated that the school meals sector could make efficiency savings of £66 million by 2011.  

Higher cost?
It is often assumed that efficiency is incompatible with sustainability in relation to the provision of school food. This is based on the premise that services that are run on a more sustainable basis cost more. It need not be the case, in most cases it will be possible to improve the sustainability of a service without increasing costs, and furthermore it is evidently possible to deliver financial savings (for example through improved energy efficiency). It is, however, a highly complex agenda and in recognition of this the School Food Trust published a comprehensive booklet entitled ‘A fresh look at school food procurement efficiency and sustainability’ in April 2008.
    
The recommendations the booklet contains will help local authorities and schools respond to a range of local and national government policy and strategy initiatives, including: Defra’s Public Sector Food Procurement Initiative; The National Improvement and Efficiency Strategy (this includes the response to CSR07 and the Local Government White Paper); DCSF’s Sustainable Schools Strategy; and The Local Government Association’s Sustainable Procurement Strategy.
    
A key part of the booklet is a series of useful and relevant case studies looking at distribution hubs such as the one in Dumfrieshire and Galloway, which saved in the region of £100,000 and a reduction in CO2 emissions of 49 tonnes. Moorfield Primary School in Newport who reduced their energy consumption by 30 per cent by changing kitchen practices and upgrading hot water facilities.

Sustainability ‘doorways’
The DCSF Sustainable Schools strategy comprises eight sustainability ‘doorways’; each plays a role in the major areas of school life – the curriculum, campus and community. Schools can come into sustainability via any of the doorways and every one provides further opportunities for organisations to get involved. It is hoped that all schools will be sustainable by 2020.
    
School food is interwoven into many of the eight doorways. The most obvious being food and drink but others such as energy and water and travel and traffic and purchasing and waste could also be greatly influenced by a number if initiatives, such as smart procurement, growing clubs and recycling.
    
Schools currently are required to evaluate their school improvement progress using a self-evaluation form (SEF) developed by Ofsted (2005). This sustainable school self-evaluation (s3) provides schools with a voluntary way to record and report their efforts to promote sustainable schools, as an integrated part of their Ofsted SEF. For some schools, parts of s3 may be pasted directly into the relevant Ofsted SEF sections.
    
An Ofsted study suggests that sustainable schools offer dynamic and vibrant learning environments because they address real-life challenges in real places with real people. Ofsted found that these schools built their good practices through a cycle of strategic goal-setting, action and assessment.   

Establishing policies
A good place to start would be by establishing a food and drink policy within a school, looking at everything from school meals, packed lunch and recycling policies, to farm visits and deciding where food should be sourced. This will need to be planned in partnership with a school’s meal provider who in turn will need to work with their procurement colleagues. There are great benefits, not only in efficiencies through local sourcing but education of children to understand the meal on their plates and where it has come from. Over time this will help influence their food choices both in and out of school.
    
Alongside efficiencies that can be made in areas where quick wins can be gained there is also a great deal of work being done in more long-term or complex agendas, often these are less visible than school gardens or oil recycling but can have sustained long term benefits. Some local authorities, such as Gateshead, have begun to offer restricted choice menus as part of its portfolio of meal services on offer. As well as the obvious benefits of children not being overwhelmed by choice and the options not running out there are real ‘behind the scene’ benefits in planning menus, less waste, less fuel consumption and more time for staff to hone skills by having to produce a smaller selection of meals each day.
    
In July the DCSF announced that £48 million of capital funding announced in 2006 had been awarded to 15 local authorities to install or upgrade kitchen facilities. The remaining £100 million is available until 2011 to any local authority (details to be announced shortly) to make improvements to kitchen or dining facilities. This funding could make a real difference to a school by providing modern energy efficient cooking equipment, servery areas and refrigeration.
    
Of course the meal on the plate plays a significant part in both sustainability and efficiency. We have covered above ways in which a school can become more efficient in the production of school food but of course there is much to be done to ensure food is in-season, sourced from sustainable stocks and has as little impact on the environment as possible. In early 2008 the School Food Trust produced a seasonality chart that brought together fruit, vegetables, salad, meat and fish in one easy to use calendar for the first time.
    
How food is procured is, however, not as simple as a trip up the aisles in a supermarket. Public sector procurement is governed by European and national legislation. In England contracts are awarded on the basis of best value, but as Peter McGrath from Derbyshire County Council says: “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket – allowing suppliers to bid for part or all of a contract can be positive.” This article merely scratches the surface of school food procurement but it highlights that there are an array of quick wins and longer term sustained changes that can be introduced to the school meals agenda that may just keep costs down whilst having a more positive impact on the environment.
    
What is always at the forefront of a caterers or schools mind throughout is the provision of a nutritious and tasty school meal. The Education Procurement Centre has been set up to support efficient procurement in schools. In recognition of the importance of school meals and the complex marketplace food procurement is a key work stream. The EPC works with a range of stakeholders looking at a number of projects to support the better procurement of school meals.

For more information
Web: www.schoolfoodtrust.org.uk