Local Appetite for Life Coordinators Network

Local Appetite for Life coordinator activities and initiatives promoting Appetite for Life recommendations

Many activities and initiatives are being undertaken across Wales to promote Appetite for Life recommendations. In order to share this work, each local coordinator has completed a template outlining the work they’ve undertaken. The following table displays the name of the activity along with the authority who undertook it. Click on the relevant link to read about their work.

Authority	Activity
Cardiff	SNAG/transition activity
Ceredigion	Menu boards   Tasting sessions  Dining room make over  Primary school rewards   Pupil cooking evenings
Conwy	SNAG initiatives   Food and fitness policy work  OCN training
Flintshire	Dining room equipment
Monmouthshire	Baseline assessments with opted out schools  Focus groups   Healthy choices project  Lunchtime supervisor training
Newport	School meals questionnaires / Tasting sessions/focus groups / Marketing in primary schools / Cooks workshops
Pembrokeshire	Reduced salt sausage   Grab and go meal scheme  Café Zone  Promotional weeks
Rhondda Cynon Taff	Lunchtime supervisor training
Torfaen	Kitchens / New Menus / Nutritional analysis of menus
Wrexham	Refurbishment of dining environment at Ysgol Bryn Alyn Food Ambassadors Toolkit Food Technology working group Training for lunchtime supervisors Pre-order System (Rhosnesni) Branding Infant Family Service

Blaenau Gwent Appetite for Life Update

A local Appetite for Life Coordinator for Blaenau Gwent has been employed, Libby Hampton, [email protected].  

The Appetite for Life Coordinator will be setting up training, starting February 2010, to deliver the OCN Level 1 in Food and Nutrition to all lunchtime supervisors.

The take-up of healthy school meals has been promoted by providing taster sessions at Parent’s Evenings. School meal samples are provided by Blaenau Gwent Catering and information stands are set up promoting the new standards in the food served in schools, as well as recommendations for children’s lunchboxes.

Salad bars have been provided in the majority of schools since 2008, this has encouraged the children to make their own healthy food choices for school meals. Positive comments have been received, expressing the effect of salad bars within the schools, examples are listed below:

The school cook said – “It has gone down really well with the children. They can make their own choices and we have very little waste’’.
Teachers commented that “More and more pupils are choosing the salad bar option, and trying new things’’.
Pupils Comments – “There are lots of healthy things to choose from”
“We get to choose whatever salad we want with our Jacket potato or baguette’’and “It’s always lovely and fresh’’.
Ystruth Primary School

A healthy school meals mascot ‘Fit Fred’ has been designed in a competition involving primary school aged children. The winning mascot, followed by the 2nd and 3rd place and 2 runners’ up mascots will feature as part of the Blaenau Gwent Healthy Bunch. An award ceremony will be taking place at the Mayor’s Parlour in December, for the Mayor to present the prizes to the winning five children.

Cookery clubs are running in schools, with ‘school recipe files’ compiled and sent out to schools as a useful resource, suitable for school cookery sessions with children. Some schools have set up cookery display boards, with photos of the recipes being made, thoughts and feelings of the food cooked, and photocopies of the recipe for parents to take home.

If you would like further information about Appetite for Life in Blaenau Gwent, please contact Libby Hampton – Appetite for Life Coordinator on 01495 355312 or email: [email protected].