More training for dinner ladies

Wednesday, 1 June 2005 12:00 AM

School dinner ladies are to be encouraged to take vocational qualifications in an attempt to up the standards of school meals.

Education Secretary Ruth Kelly will announce on Wednesday that, while she considers them to be unsung heroes in the education system, a vocational course is needed to provide them with the skills necessary to create quality meals for children.

On the back of a campaign led by chef Jamie Oliver the Government announced more funding for school meals; it is now looking at the skills of those who must deliver them.

Dinner ladies need to be able to provide healthy meals, and have a good basic understanding of nutritional content so that they can make informed choices over the food they provide for children.

In a speech to Unison, Ms Kelly will outline her plans for the vocational course. She is expected to say: "The new vocational qualification will recognise for the first time the crucial skills and experience that dinner ladies, school cooks and support staff bring to their work.

"It will ensure that everyone in the school kitchen aspires to the same high standards."

It is not believed that the qualification will be compulsory, though it could become expected by schools.

Christian McAnea, head of education services at Unison, said that dinner ladies needed to be given more time to make school meals. She also suggested that new minimum standards should be introduced.

Ms McAnea, said: "The staff have been doing their best with the resources and time available but we want them to be given the time to cook meals from scratch. This can only be done by increasing the hours they work and employing more people.

"The Government's plans to invest more money into school meals is vital, but it will take more than just money to turn this around. We need to have a properly planned workforce that has access to training and follows a minimum set of national standards."

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