On Monday night, November 10th, Nathan Scarlett, Russ Ball, Alex Moody and Steven Cross, all winners of the Jamie Oliver Good School Food Awards, dished up a series of bites, from chipotle bean tacos with guacamole and pink pickled onions, and slow cooked beef shin ragu with potato gnocchi, to barbecue jerk chicken with dumplings.
While adapted for eating canapé style for the event, these are all meals served in the chefs’ own schools.
At the event, Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke about the importance of partnership working between government and different sectors, highlighting food in schools as a key focus and dispelling the notion that children favour processed, low-quality food.
Interviewed by Dr Amir Khan for ITV’s Lorraine Show, he said: “There is this myth that you can't get your kids to eat good, healthy, nutritious food that's often thrown at those doing school meals, but that is not true.
“You can do it. It's much better food, the kids like it and that is what we've got to do across the country.”
Dame Prue Leith, patron at Chefs in Schools, the charity through which two of the chefs – Nathan Scarlett and Russ Ball – came into school meals, said: “It’s wonderful to see the Prime Minister recognising that school food matters.
“What children eat at school shapes not just their health, but how they learn, behave and grow. For years, many of us have been arguing that good food should be at the centre of education, not an afterthought.
“If this signals a genuine commitment to improving the quality and reach of school meals, it could transform the lives of millions of children.”
“We’re not just talking theory,” said Nathan Scarlett. “The PM tasted exactly what children are eating in our schools. This is what the new standards can look like in practice, and it’s vital they see it, taste it and understand it firsthand.”
The Government said the Downing Street event heralded its ‘renewed commitment to improving school food’.
As well as extending free school meals to all pupils whose households receive Universal Credit from the start of the 2026 academic year and rolling out an early adopter scheme for free universal breakfast clubs, the Government is currently undertaking its first review of the School Food Standards in over a decade.
For the chefs, it was a chance to show the Prime Minister what’s possible when the new School Food Standards are met — and exceeded.
Chefs in Schools is a national charity that provides practical guidance, onsite transformation programmes, and online training for school kitchen teams, while campaigning for lasting improvements to school food nationwide.