The main conference agenda for this year’s Main Event saw Judith Gregory, LACA chair, offer delegates a round-up of activity over the past year and pointers to future action.
She said the year had seen continuing ‘messaging’ on fairer funding in all four nations of the UK, along with a call to ring-fence that funding, and an expansion of free school meals to all families on universal credit.
Referring to plans in England to roll-out breakfast clubs, she pointed out that when asked, 72% of LACA members had said they would rather see the breakfast funding put into school lunches.
The breakfast pilot scheme had received ‘mixed reviews’, adding that some schools had already pulled out due to lack of funding and staffing issues.
“Wales is in a much better place in terms of school meals than England, and there are lessons that can be learnt here,” she said.
She said that school meal standards were being reviewed, and she had been part of the consultation, but ‘we haven’t seen any details of these deliberations yet’.
The issue of increased funding for UIFSM had been the focus of LACA’s Great School Lunch at Westminster, and she had been pleased to join The Senedd in Wales for the celebration to mark the successful roll-out of universal free school meals for all primary children.
And she welcomed the tireless allergy campaigners Nadim and Tanya Ednan-Laperouse, who had agreed to become LACA ambassadors.
Tanya said she hoped LACA could use its national reach to help spread the message about good allergy management and ‘encourage members to act as champions for change’.
Read more details about the LACA Main Event in the September issue of Public Sector Catering.