Agenda item

That the Committee acknowledged the work undertaken by NEWydd, officers and schools to deliver the Welsh Government’s strategy for the provision of Universal Free School Meals.

In presenting the report Mr Steve Jones, Managing  Director of NEWydd Catering and Cleaning explained that the report centred around universal free school meals. Although this was a positive step by Welsh Government (WG), as a business it had highlighted certain risks as it made the company more of a target for private sector companies. Schools made these decisions themselves, so it was NEWydd’s priority to provide a good service to retain the business.

The roll out of free school meals commenced in September 2022 with reception aged pupils and then with years 1 and 2 after Easter 2023. The service was on target to roll out to years 3 and 4 in September 2023 with years 5 and 6 eligible from April 2024. A significant amount of work had been undertaken in schools which included improvements to infrastructure, equipment, resources and ensuring processes were in place. A cross party project group was established to oversee this which included the Managing Director representing NEWydd and colleagues from across the Council to ensure targets were met. The Group also represented the Council nationally at meetings led by WG or the Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) to discuss finance and catering implementation.

Members were referred to section 2 of the report which included detail on the improvements to infrastructure with information provided on the central kitchen created 2 years ago and the work undertaken following the roll out with more school meals provided. All meals were fully compliant with the WG Healthy Eating in Schools Regulations with work underway to reintroduce, for example, more home cooked recipes and on-site baking similar to what was provided before the pandemic. Information on the pilot partnership with Well Fed was given with the results due shortly.

In relation to resources, it was confirmed that the revenue funding from WG  was based on a meal unit rate of £2.90 per meal with many Councils including Flintshire reporting that this did not cover the cost of delivery. A Group had been established to review the actual cost of a school meal including all costs not just the food with the Managing Director representing the Council at a meeting on the 17 July. Referring to Capital Funding WG had awarded the authority £3m of capital funding which had enabled improvements to infrastructure, improvements to gas and electricity supplies into kitchens, ventilation works and the purchase of equipment. It had also enabled increased cooking capacity within the kitchens, and he thanked the schools for their support whilst this work was undertaken. There were a small number of schools waiting for the infrastructure works to begin and a schedule of works was planned with the Council’s property team during the summer term to ensure completion by September. An overview of the improved seating arrangements, lighting and crockery was given.

Referring to risks the Managing Director said it was important that families who were eligible for free school meals applied and he outlined how this was signposted across the council. Consultation continued with parents and schools with another survey taking place in September to ensure any issues at a school level were fed back. It was currently successful with uptake rates at 70% of those eligible aligning with WG targets but the service wanted to improve this figure to reach as many pupils as possible.

In response to a question from Councillor Dave Mackie on the energy efficiency of the new electric cookers, the Managing Director was not aware that they were more costly to use. Gas equipment was being replaced with Electric equipment as this helped with ventilation as the rules for gas equipment were more stringent. Some of the Capital funding had been used in schools to increase energy efficiency within the school.

In response to questions on menu choices and funding, the Managing Director advised that there was a large choice of meals but if the quality of the main offer was increased, the hot meat and vegetarian main hot offer choice going alongside this would be reduced. Currently the two main offers provided plus a jacket potato with various fillings, pasta pot with various fillings and sandwiches with various fillings. It was proposed to reduce this to meet or come within the funding envelope available which would reduce this to four items, the two main hot choices and pasta or jacket potato and sandwiches. He said that the most nutritious meal that a child could have every day was a school meal and if the hot offer was taken every day, then this was guaranteed to be the most nutritious.

From September all schools would be provided with fresh salad bars to support every meal with fresh fruit and yoghurt bars for dessert. This had been trialled recently in some schools and the children really enjoyed it, especially as they could serve themselves with many children trying foods they had not tried before.

The Chief Officer (Education & Youth) acknowledged that younger children may not be as confident to try a different range of foods. The menus were published via social media accounts, so children and families were able to look at the choices. This was a fantastic opportunity funded through the Co-operation Agreement and the Managing Director was representing the Council on the group looking at finance and hopefully WG would be in a position to increase the funding per meal to accommodate the rising costs. The emphasis was on quality to ensure children had a really healthy meal and she asked that Members support the portfolio by encouraging families in their wards to apply for the free school meals.

            In response to the comments made by Councillor Andrew Parkhurst around the quality of school meals, the Managing Director agreed that a sandwich would not be as nutritious as the hot offer. He agreed with the comments on processed cheese and white bread and said improving the sandwich offer was being considered. The menu was constantly being improved especially with the re-introduction of home baking in the kitchens.

            In response to the comment made by Councillor Parkhurst concerning the seating at schools, the Managing Director said that this had been well received in schools who had been given a choice of various options. They were fixed with backless chairs, but the balance was that they folded into a small unit which could be moved out the way as the halls in schools were used for other activities within the school.

            In response to the comment made by Councillor Parkhurst regarding waste and the use of single use plastics, the Managing Director said it was difficult to measure waste. He said waste was measured from the kitchens and production daily which was kept to a minimum. Once it had left the counter it was difficult to measure, and the service was criticised during Covid with regards to the use of disposables, but these had to be used because of the way the meals were served in classrooms. There had been a massive reduction in single use plastics with very few used in the catering service at present and once past October they would not be able to be used at all. Everyone was encouraged to take a plate, knife, and fork which was the most environmentally friendly way to serve a meal. Sandwiches were served in cardboard and all supplier’s ensured waste was kept to at a minimum.

            Councillor Carolyn Preece spoke as a school governor and said the chairs were an excellent use of space with the children and staff liking them as they were easy to fold up and move out of the way. Referring to nutrition she confirmed that she attended the Well-Fed sampling with the pupils who really enjoyed the samples they tried, and they looked very nutritious.

The recommendation, as outlined within the report, was moved by Councillor Carolyn Preece and seconded by Councillor Gladys Healey.

RESOLVED

That the Committee acknowledged the work undertaken by NEWydd, officers and schools to deliver the Welsh Government’s strategy for the provision of Universal Free School Meals.