Healthy Eating Policy

Healthy Eating Policy

1. Introduction

As part of the Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) Programme, we at St John the Baptist Girls Primary School encourage our children to become more aware of the need for healthy food in their lunch boxes.

What people eat is known to be a key factor influencing health. Research indicates a strong link between diet and performance. For example; a low sugar intake promotes concentration, lessens hyperactivity, protects teeth, and lessens the risk of diabetes. A low salt intake reduces the risk of heart disease in later life.

We believe that adults (staff, parents and carers) should be good role models and should support the children in understanding how balanced nutrition contributes to a person’s health, happiness and general well-being.

The school is aware that the primary role model in children’s healthy eating education lies with parents. We wish to build a positive and supportive relationship with the parents of children at our school through mutual understanding, trust and co-operation. In promoting this objective we will:

Inform parents about the school healthy eating policy and practice;
Encourage parents to be involved in reviewing school policy and making modifications to it, as

To promote healthy eating habits in our school, we introduced a Healthy Eating Policy in 2009. The school participated in Food Dudes, a programme encouraging children to try fruit and vegetables, in 2013. This programme was very successful in engendering a positive attitude in the children to fruit and vegetables. The policy was reviewed in autumn 2015. All stakeholders in the process i.e. parents, pupils, staff, were consulted and the revised policy was ratified by the B.O.M. in October.

Relationship to Characteristic Spirit of the School:

St John the Baptist Girls School seeks to help the children to grow and develop into healthy, confident, mature adults, capable of realising their full potential as human beings. Developing a healthy attitude to food and helping children to develop good habits is seen as an important part of school life.

Aims

To encourage a positive attitude to food
To promote a healthy diet
To educate about different foods
To promote good eating habits
To encourage children to have a healthy diet
To inform the adults of the school community about healthy eating in school
To have a healthy school community

4. Objectives

To enable each child to appreciate the importance of good nutrition for growing and developing and staying healthy
To enable each child to accept some personal responsibility for making wise food choices and adopting a healthy, balanced

Curriculum/Education

There are many opportunities in the primary school curriculum for learning about the importance of living a healthy

The importance of balanced nutrition and healthy food choices is explicitly taught through the SPHE curriculum. Food and Nutrition is an important part of the Strand Unit: Taking Care of My Body at each class level and is taught each year. These themes are also dealt with in other subjects such as Science and

A copy of the healthy food pyramid is on display in every classroom. Healthy eating week is held annually.

As part of our environmental awareness programme and in keeping with our Green schools status lunches should be packed in recyclable boxes avoiding the use of tin foil, cling film and plastic bags. All litter and uneaten food is to be taken home.

The following guide is designed to help parents provide quick, appetising, and nutritious lunches for our children:

Bread & Alternatives

Savouries

Bread or rolls (preferably whole-

meal, whole-grain or whole- wheat varieties)

Wraps Pitta bread

Bread sticks

Rice – wholegrain Pasta – wholegrain Wholemeal Scones/ Crackers.

Lean Meat (e.g. chicken/turkey, ham)

Eggs

Tinned Fish eg tuna/sardines/salmon

Potato Salad

Hummus

Drinks

Water or Milk are the ideal choice Fruit juices - without added sugar. Pure

fruit juice also contains natural sugar and should be diluted with water)

Yoghurt

Dairy

Milk

Natural Yoghurt

Cheese (triangles/slices/ small blocks of cheddar/gouda/edam etc)

Fruit & Vegetables

Apples, Banana, Peach Mandarins, Plums

Orange segments

Fruit Salad, dried fruit

Pineapple cubes Grapes

Cucumber, Sweetcorn, Tomato

Pepper slices

Carrot batons

Pupils should be encouraged to have a role in preparing their own lunches and meals in order to promote responsibility or their own health and nutrition.

Water

We encourage children to bring in a water bottle (that can be recycled) so they can have access to water throughout the day. Hydration is important for concentration.

We ask that children do not bring the following to school:

Snacks known to be high in sugar, saturated fat, salt, additives and preservatives, including the following:

Crisps (including crisp-style snacks)
Fizzy drinks (including fizzy fruit-flavoured water, juices, etc)
Sweets or bars
Cake/s
Chocolate biscuits/bars
Cereal bars (these can often contain as much sugar as chocolate bars)
Chewing gum
Fruit winders

So as to take a proactive approach to healthy lunches, teachers will from time to time, reward children who can show a piece of fruit or other healthy foods in their lunchboxes.

Food Pyramid (recommended daily intake)

Useful Links with Ideas for Healthy Lunches: (these URLs may be subject to change)

http://www.safefood.eu/SafeFood/media/SafeFoodLibrary/Documents/Education/2012- Safefood-Healthy-Lunchboxes-Leaflet-v4.pdf http://www.publichealth.hscni.net/sites/default/files/Healthier_Lunchbox_Leaflet_09_10_Ir ish.pdf

www.indi.ie (Irish Nutrition and Dietetic Institute website) You will find a leaflet ‘Are you packing a healthy lunch www.healthpromotion.ie

http://www.nhs.uk/Change4Life/Pages/healthy-lunchbox-picnic.aspx http://www.freshforkids.com.au/lunch_box/lunch_box.html http://www.nutritionaustralia.org/national/packing-school-lunchbox

6. Treat Days, Special Days and Celebrations

Friday is treat day. On treat days pupils are allowed a small portion from the top shelf of the food pyramid e.g. fun size chocolate bar/small iced bun/biscuits.

Foods with artificial additive and colours e.g. Smarties, M & M’s, boiled sweets, cereal bars etc. should be avoided. Special events and celebrations e.g. Green Flag days, food festivals, food demonstrations, end of term parties - on these occasions foods other than fruit or vegetables may be offered, but the staff will remind the children that this is an “occasional” treat and not “every day food”.

Other Considerations

Allergies

The school community is aware of the possibility of food allergies within the school population, particularly nut allergies. Parents or carers of children who are on special diets for medical reasons, or who have allergies, will be asked to provide as much information as possible about which foods are suitable or foods which must be avoided. This information will be relayed to all staff.

There is a total ban on nuts and nut products due to serious allergies of some pupils.

Roles and Responsibilities:

Role of Parents:

Provide a healthy well-balanced lunch for children
Encourage healthy eating
Inform the school of any child’s special dietary needs
To implement school policy by not allowing their children to bring chewing gum, crisps, chocolate bars or sweets to school except on treat day.

Role of Children:

To eat their lunch
To bring home any uneaten lunch
To help make their lunches and remind parents of the Healthy Lunch Policy
Not to bring chewing gum, crisps, chocolate bars or sweets to school except on treat days.

Role of School Staff

To promote and encourage healthy eating.
To educate children by teaching the appropriate content from the curriculum.

Responsibility for review:

A policy review will take place in autumn 2018 co-ordinated by Bríd Martley.

Communication and Ratification

A copy of the reviewed policy will be sent to all parents and a copy will be included in the enrolment pack for new pupils. The policy will be published on the school website (www.cashelgirlsschool.ie)

Signed: ____________________________________(Chairperson)

Signed: ____________________________________(Principal)

Date: ______________________________________