Nursery Menus - Guidelines
On 16th January 2012 The School Food Trust introduced a set of Food and Drink Guidelines for early years settings in England. The guidelines, whilst currently voluntary, detail how often, how much, and which types of food should be provided for children aged one to five years. It also lists foods and ingredients that need to be limited or avoided for the menu as a whole and for individual meals & snacks.
Why the guidelines were set?
Following the result of a series of studies on nursery nutrition which consistently highlighted inadequacies in nursery food:
With 1 in 5 children starting school obese, obesity is becoming an increasing problem
in the UK, and evidence that diet is linked to success in early years. The importance of
serving the nutritionally balanced meals at nursery is vital
There is evidence that the diets of under-5s in the UK are:
- too low in Vitamins A and C,
- too low in iron and zinc,
- too low in Vitamin D, in certain groups of children.
- lacking in fruits and vegetables
- too high in salt
- too high in the types of sugars with contribute to tooth decay
Currently, in the UK
· 1 in 5 children start school obese
· Type 11 diabetes is starting to be seen in obese children
· Dental health is poor in many young children
· Cases of rickets are increasing
· More than 1 in 4 children may be at risk from iron deficiency which is linked to slower intellectual development and poor behaviour in the longer term
Initially, in 2006 the Caroline Walker Trust CWT issued nutritional guidance for nurseries because
research showed that the diets of many under-5s are inadequate. The Caroline Walker
Trust (CWT) is a registered charity that promotes better public health through good
food. The trust is widely regarded as the main authority on nursery nutrition and they
provide practical and nutritional guidelines to this age group in daycare settings.
Subsequent studies on nursery menus used the CWT guidance as a bench mark for
reporting: The Georgie Porgie report, published in autumn 2008, achieved significant TV and press publicity. More recently in January 2010, a Panorama report stated that the results of a national survey of nursery food identified the following problems:
- None provided enough energy
- None provided sufficient iron or zinc.
A similar survey in Liverpool, executed by Menu Matters on behalf of the Liverpool
Health and Wellbeing Trust, and used as part of the consultation phase in producing the guidelines, showed that from 34 nurseries across
Liverpool:
- All nurseries were deficient in energy, iron and zinc, and
- 85% had salt levels which exceed guidelines.
The School Food Trust reviewed this study along with others, showing similar trends across the country and have formulated a set of nutritional guidelines to address the deficiencies highlighted and which, if adopted will ensure that childrens nutritional needs are met while they are at nursery.
What are the guidelines ?
The guidelines issued by The School Food Trust, whilst currently voluntary, detail how often, how much, and which types of food should be provided for children aged one to five years. It also lists foods and ingredients that need to be limited or avoided for the menu as a whole, and for individual meals & snacks.
They have been set for the menu as a whole and for each separate meal ie.breakfast, lunch, tea and snacks
The food and drink guidelines are underpinned by a Nutrient Framework, which defines the level of 12 different nutrients that children should gain from their nursery food. A menu that is compliant to these guidelines for the under-5’s in childcare will satisfy the nutritional needs of this age group.
Menu Matters can help:
Send us your Menus and recipes and we will review them against the guidelines. Our team can advise why and how changes may be required to ensure that your menus meet the guidelines. Furthermore, in many cases this may also save you money in terms of ingredient cost.
How do your nursery menus perform currently?
Evidence of a nursery menu meeting the guidelines
