Educational Catering : Oscar's

Long before Jamie Oliver began trying to persuade schools to produce healthier meals and get the pupils to enjoy them, a number of schools in Norfolk were building on a successful new food presentation and service concept that is turning their students on to wholesome eating.

Where pupils have ‘dinner money’ to spend as they wish, a number of schools were experiencing an exodus to the local ‘chippie’, sweet shop or burger bar.  The cause of this, as Jamie Oliver highlighted, is often a combination of low quality food, unexciting presentation and institutional style serving in the dining halls. The result is an unhealthy diet for the pupils.

In response a number of Norfolk secondary schools, a mix of inner city and county establishments, in partnership with specialist facilities management company NCS Group, have created a range of contemporary and ethnically varied food options, packaged and served in modern, café-style environments.

Branded ‘Oscars’ the dining halls are divided into a number of different meal concepts such as ‘The Bread Basket’, ‘Super Bowls’, ‘Pasta and Jacket Pots’, ‘Pie in the Sky’ and ‘Snack Bites’, producing an informal atmosphere that appeals to the students.  Each concept has a separate point of sale, with clear signage, which speeds up service, minimises queuing and offers plenty of choice.

NCS Director, Alison Allen, says that the success of the concept lies not just in the foods on offer, but equally importantly, in the way they are presented and served.  In place of the traditional ‘dinner plate’, meals are presented in packaging to which the students relate – breads in attractive packaging, pots of pasta, chilli and curry, salad bowls and more.

The students are now ordering more hot meals and even taking salads to accompany them. Fresh fruit sales are reported to be up by 85%, salads up around 60%, chips down 65% and there has been a six fold increase in milk products and drinks.

There is an element of free meals in most of the schools serviced by NCS Group and, where implemented, the ‘Oscars’ concept options are provided for these students as well.

An increasing proportion of the ‘dinner money’ is now being spent within the schools, on freshly prepared, healthy food that combines choice, value and convenience whilst exceeding the government’s nutritional guidelines.

Whether one of the country’s top chefs can persuade children to opt for more nutritious food remains to be seen.  However,the problem may have as much to do with do with the way meals are presented and the surroundings in which they are served, as with the food itself.

Judging by the success of the ‘Oscars’ style ventures at the Norfolk schools, getting the food right, and then presenting and serving it in a way with which the students relate is a major first step.