An exploration of adherence to the requirements for School Food Regulations 2014 in primary schools in Trafford

Abstract

Parents send their children to school expecting them to be fed nutritionally. If they have opted for a school provided lunch by law it should adhere to The Requirements for School Food Regulations, 2014. There are 24,442 schools in England with a total of 9,073,832 pupils of which 23.8% of those pupils are eligible for a free school meal. The aim of this research was to investigate if primary schools in the Trafford Local Authority area were compliant with the regulations set out in the legislation and identify any trends for difficulties experienced if not compliant. Quantitative and qualitative data was collected in the form of a postal survey. The questionnaires were sent out to primary schools in the Trafford area. Alongside the questionnaire, a content analysis of school menus in Trafford and recent Ofsted inspection reports were reviewed to identify similarities and disparities. Data retrieved was analysed using framework analysis.

This research highlights a lack of regular checks of legislation compliance by a governing body who has the power to take enforcement action against non-compliance. At present Ofsted are conducting routine inspections to visit and check that compliance is met of the school food standards, however a review of recent inspections at primary schools in the Trafford area show no evidence this is occurring. The average school food standards compliance score was 84.7% which means that schools are not adhering to some of the requirements. Previous research in Blackpool highlighted that out of 33 primary schools (33%) in the area, only 11 were meeting the school food standards. Ofsted research from 2018 showed that there were no reasons to believe that schools were not meeting the school food standards which contradicts the results from this research and other studies conducted after 2018. There are certain requirements that schools find easier to adhere to than others which further research needed to identify underlying issues.

Further research is needed on the school menu review policies and the implementation of changes, packed lunch policies and how these are monitored and enforced by the schools including the consideration of expanding the free school meals policy. It is recommended that the UK government needs to make a decision on which governing body will be instructed to carry out routine school food standards checks with clear guidelines and enforcement action powers.