Margaret Blairy fed children at Mandeville Primary in Hackney for over four decades. During this period of time it’s estimated that she served up around two million school meals, serving on average 250 pupils every school day.
In the Covid-19 pandemic Margaret helped set up a shop giving away food to local families and free school meals to children who needed them. She retired as a school chef last year but spoke at the recent Chefs in Schools Sustainability Conference.
Speaking about the award, she said: “I am lost for words. Thank you. I committed to the job because it was for the children. I loved to cook for them. I fell more and more in love with the job and the cooking and feeding the children.
“It was a highlight when the children would come to the kitchen and ask for a favourite recipe to take home for their parents to cook. That was inspiring. What’s kept me going is I found I was committed to making sure that the children were well fed.
“School food has changed a lot in 42 years. It’s no longer custard and cake or sponge with jam. There’s a lot more fruit and vegetables, less sugar and salt. It’s healthier now. It’s nice that things change and for the better. It’s good for the children and there’s always something new to learn. It’s a very rewarding job.”
Chefs in Schools is a charity on a mission to ‘transform’ the lives of children through better school food. The charity’s co-founder Nicole Pisani used to cook alongside Margaret.
Pisani added: “I came into school food from a restaurant environment where I was head chef and you were expected to know all the answers, but working with Margaret, I realised I had so many questions. I learned from her from day one.
“For 42 years Margaret cooked for children and impacted so many lives, including my own. Her contribution and impact on so many of us cannot be underestimated which is why Margaret is the worthy winner of our first Lifetime Achievement Award.”
To find out more about Chefs in Schools and how they can support your kitchen team, visit: chefsinschools.org.uk