Healthy Eating Policy

HEALTHY EATING POLICY

Context

Children are provided with regular drinks and food in adequate quantities for their needs. Food and drink is properly prepared, nutritious, and complies with dietary, medical, cultural, ethical and religious requirements.

We understand that nutrition is a significant factor in the growth, development and overall functioning of a child. Good nutrition provides the energy and nutrients essential to sustain life and promotes physical, emotional and cognitive development. The development of healthy eating practices and physical activity can prevent disease and support a lifetime of good health. Good nutrition is critical to optimizing each child’s potential for success. Meeting nutritional requirements throughout childhood is essential to full intellectual development. Research documents tell us that under-nutrition impacts on children’s behaviour, performance and overall quality of development. Children require sufficient energy and essential nutrients each day to concentrate on accomplished learning tasks. Even mild under-nutrition and short term hunger are barriers to learning. The meals and snacks served in the Cleveland Unit aim to meet children’s nutrition needs, provide models of healthy eating patterns, and help children establish good eating patterns from an early age. We are aware of the key role we have in contributing to family and community health and well-being promoting healthy eating habits. We recognise that sharing food is a fundamental experience for all people; a primary way to nurture and celebrate our cultural diversity; and an excellent bridge for building friendships, and inter-generational bonds.

To work in partnership with families and other professionals to support children in developing healthy eating practices which will become embedded for life.

2.Objectives

To ensure that we deliver an effective and consistent approach to healthy eating practices, and to ensure that individual nutritional, dietary, medical, cultural, ethical, religious and individual special needs requirements of children are met.

To develop children’s understanding of the importance of the social context in which eating takes place by making the provision and eating of food an enjoyable and safe experience, in a pleasurable environment.

To promote positive attitudes towards food through all learning opportunities provided in the Unit, including an understanding of a balanced diet, in which some foods play a greater role than others.

To raise awareness with parents and carers of a positive approach to food, nutrition and oral health and to encourage and support all parents and carers in offering healthy choices to children.

To monitor menus and food choices, to inform policy development and provision.

3.Guidelines

We actively promote healthier food choices during the day;

Breakfast is offered to children who struggle to have breakfast before nursery. We offer a choice of wholegrain cereals and warm or cold milk. We do not routinely add sugar to cereals.
Children are offered healthy snacks in the morning and, where appropriate, in the afternoon. These include carbohydrates (e.g. toast, crackers, breadsticks, rice cakes, pitta breads, poppadoms), protein (e.g. cheese, hummous), fruit and vegetables. We are a member of the national fruit and vegetable scheme.
Fruit is also offered as an alternative or additional dessert for all children.
For drinks at snack and lunch time, children are offered either milk or water. In line with advice on oral health, we do not routinely offer fruit juices except on special occasions or as part of tasting activities. When fruit juice is offered, it is sugar-free (or reduced sugar) and is always well diluted. Fresh fruit juice is diluted half water to juice.
Fresh drinking water is provided freely throughout the school day, and where possible, children are able to access this independently. We promote independence through the use of sports-type lidded bottles with children’s photos. Where children cannot manage to access drinking water independently, appropriate communication strategies are put in place to enable children to request a drink and staff are conscientious in offering regular drinks throughout the day and in observing children’s well-being to watch for possible signs of thirst. Some staff have had training in management of constipation and provide advice to other staff on the impact that diet (and drinks in particular) can have on this condition.
Lunch times – We have participated in the Healthy Menu and Food Sampling initiative promoted by Middlesbrough Council, which identified all meals were low in salt and fats.
We aim to cater for all dietary needs. Halal, vegetarian, pureed meals are all provided as necessary. The cook liaises with the class teacher in managing children’s individual needs.
In order to encourage acceptance of healthier food choices, children are offered a limited choice of main course and are encouraged to try the healthy meal choices provided. However, we know that choice-making is an important skill and mealtimes can be the most motivating times to practise this, so choices are offered within the savoury course e.g. gravy or no gravy; and with dessert. Choices are presented appropriate to the child’s abilities.

Children do not bring their own lunch to nursery – this would only be necessary if a child’s needs could not be met by the hospital meals service which would be unusual. If this is necessary, the teacher works with parents/carers to encourage healthy choices.
Occasionally children will come to nursery with different experiences to those above. Often children will happily accept that different things happen at nursery and because everyone else is doing it, they accept the change without upset. Where this is not the case, we work with parents/carers to help children to gradually get used to the new experiences for example by gradually diluting juice more and more until they can happily drink water or by offering alternative options (e.g. finger foods) if children have been offered the healthy choice main meals and are consistently not eating anything.
Due to their special educational needs, some of our children can only tolerate a limited range of tastes/textures and if these are not offered, they will not eat. In these circumstances, teachers are responsible for seeking approval from the headteacher for alternatives to be offered. There will always be a plan to work towards widening the range of foods accepted by each child.
Food exploration can be beneficial in cases where children are reluctant to eat orally or to try certain foods. It builds awareness, tolerance, familiarity and confidence with food. Although playing with food is a normal and important developmental stage, we understand that many parents and carers can become anxious about their child ‘getting mixed messages’ about what is appropriate behaviour at mealtimes. For this reason, food exploration is always presented as a separate activity to mealtimes and different equipment/resources are used so that children are less likely to become confused. Staff also support parents/carers to understand the long term benefits of such activities.
As part of teaching that some foods should play a greater part in a healthy diet than others, but that most things are acceptable in moderation, we do celebrate special occasions with the children. This may include sweets following a walk to the shops; a scone in the hospital cafe; or a selection of small party snacks to celebrate a birthday. At such times healthy options are offered at the same time and with the same approach as the less healthy food and only small portions are encouraged, (such as a few chocolate buttons rather than a whole bag).
Similarly some foods are used as motivators in developing communication strategies such as PECs. These foods must be chosen by the child and therefore are exempt from the healthy eating policy. The role of food in this activity is to facilitate the development of communication and not to provide the main nutritional needs of the child. The smallest portions possible are used in such activities.

Hygiene & Safety

The Cleveland Unit has a cook who prepares children’s lunches and some snacks. She has training through Middlesbrough council and currently holds a 5 star rating for food safety and hygiene. Lunchtime supervisors serve children’s lunches. Teachers and support staff help children at lunchtimeprepare snacks and drinks with the children, where appropriate. Good practices in food storage, preparation and presentation are followed by all staff and modelled to children who are helped to follow them.

All staff are aware of effective infection control measures, including handwashing. Some staff have had training provided by James Cook Hospital and share their knowledge with others.
Key staff in the Cleveland Unit have completed training in food hygiene. Key information from this training has been shared with all staff
Staff and children always wash their hands before preparing or eating food; afterwards and as necessary, with safely hot soapy water. Staff have training in appropriate handwashing techniques and information posters are displayed at key points around the unit.
All equipment is washed in a dishwasher. Tables are protected by tablecloths and/or are cleaned, with safely hot soapy water, prior to use for foods.
Disposable cloths are used for the cleaning of hands, faces and tables. Where possible hands are washed in a sink.
All children are given plates, bowls or boards (as appropriate) for food preparation and eating.
Where necessary children’s clothes are protected with bibs.

5.Monitoring and Evaluation

The head teacher monitors the menus and ensures that all meals offer a balanced diet. The nursery cook supports her in monitoring lunches and class teachers contribute to the monitoring of lunches, snacks and drinks.

Reviewed May 2015