Food at British Schools: Good or Bad?

I’ve realised that this may be an important questions that may be on your minds. The education may be great but is the food just as good?

Well, the UK has had an issue with food at school to be honest. Only about 4 four to 5 years ago, it was very normal to be served French fries and hamburger for lunch. However that has all changed. The British TV celebrity, Jamie Oliver made sure that would never happen again. He shocked many by showing how much junk food was being served in schools.

Nowadays, you’ll find a salad bar and a much more balanced meal pattern. This is mainly state schools but private schools tend to have better quality food but it is not a guarantee.
I will try to describe the typical meals that a student may eat in an average day at a British boarding school.

Breakfast 7.40am: There will always be a wide choice of cereals including all the healthy options and the sugary ones. Toast bread will always be available with all the normal spreads and jam. There will also be a hot meal available. This may be a traditional English breakfast, pancakes, pain au chocolat, crumpets or bagels and more. Fruit juices, tea or coffee will also be available.

Lunch 1.00pm: There is a salad bar for those wanting a healthier meal. The main may be spaghetti with roasted aubergines. There are just so many meals that it will be impossible to list all. I am just giving a typical meal. For dessert, this may be fruit salad or even chocolate cake! It is all very balanced. Of course there is always a choice of fruits available.

Dinner 6.00pm: The salad bar is again available. For main, this may be chicken pie with carrots. For dessert, it may be cookies. Toast bread is available.

This is just a snapshot of a typical day and does not show the whole story. Therefore it is important if you are visiting a school, you ask for a menu of the week to get to know what the food there is like.

The importance of the quality of food may not be the deciding factor but when you begin school there, it will become a part of your life so you will need to assess the quality of food when you decide.