Parents|| Parents' Association|| Kitchen|| Suppliers|| Media|| Employment|| Kids' Corner|| Contact Us
School Leaders
The nutritional guidelines for school meals has changed, Ofsted inspections are taking into account the level and quality of catering services offered. Tenders are common practice today, parents are taking an interest in what is happening, more pressure is on the school to change the catering services than ever before!
Restaurant école makes sure that if you are interested in fresh food and determined to make it happen, we will make the process easy for your school and help you in all those listed issues.
The only thing we need to know from your school is who is going to lead the project, the head, the chair of the school, the bursar? Without achieving this critical step your children will continue to eat convenience food. The decision is yours.
What are our outgoings on food each month?
How much is your caterer spending on food every month? Jamie Oliver discovered some schools were spending as little as 37p on each meal. Here are some facts and figures about how much we're spending on food in our schools and colleges:
- Currently our average spending on food is £0.60 for Primary schools and £0.85 for secondary schools or academies
- In September, our average spending on food will go up to £0.65 in primary schools (23% more than the government recommendation of £0.50) and £0.95 in secondary schools and academies (37% more than the government recommendation of £0.60)
- Because we're spending more on actual food, we are able to provide you with a total fresh food service with no reliance on convenience foods!
More detailed information broken down month by month is available here...
Our monthly food costs for schools in 2007
Our monthly food costs for academies in 2007
Restaurant école project for school leaders
'Every Child' is a strong theme for Restaurant école and has been very much part of the ethos in the development of their kitchen garden project. This really is an excellent example of what can be achieved - and everyone has been involved.
The project could begin soon after the appointment of Restaurant école - which would help to bring a vision of how part of the school grounds could be made part of the school's curriculum, and school-led.
Francois' aim is to enable all the children in the school to experience the outdoor learning environment in a meaningful and hands-on way - and part of this vision includes a growing area for fruit and vegetables.
Most school grounds already have a number of areas for play and outdoor learning, why not create the "kitchen garden project"?
Kitchen Garden Project
| Vegetable | Sowing time | Harvest time | Weeks to harvest |
| Beetroot | Mid march - July | July onwards | 12 - 14 weeks |
| Carrots (early) | March - April | June - July | 12 - 14 weeks |
| Cabbage (summer) | March - April | June - July | 10 - 12 weeks |
| Dwarf Broad Beans | March - May | July - September | 13 - 15 weeks |
| Land Cress | March onwards | May onwards | 8 - 10 weeks |
| Lettuce | March - July | June - October | 8 - 12 weeks |
| Onions (sets) | March - April | July - August | 18 - 22 weeks |
| Peas (early) | March | June | 12 - 16 weeks |
| Potatoes(early) | March - Early April | June - July | 13 - 16 weeks |
| Radish | March - September | April - October | 4 - 6 weeks |
| Rocket | March - July | May - September | 8 weeks |
| Salad Onions | February - July | June - October | 14 - 16 weeks |
| Shallots | February - March | July | 16 - 18 weeks |
| Spinach | March - July | June - October | 8 - 12 weeks |
| Tomato | Early March | July | 20 weeks |
News bite...
"'Restaurant Ecole' aims to improve school catering services at no cost ... their philosophy is to provide meals that are prepared and cooked daily from fresh and, where possible, local ingredients.
Tim Bowden, the new head teacher at Holy Trinity, said: 'The response from our children
has been fantastic and there is a real buzz in the restaurant. Our parents are also delighted as the pupils are no longer complaining
that they're hungry the moment they leave the school gates. One child was even heard to say that their mum's cooking was not as good as the lunches at school!
Kevin Anscombe and Maggie Driscoll, head teachers at Martin Infant and Juniors, added, "It is noticeable that the children really appreciate the 'real food' on offer and are taking the time to sit and enjoy their meal." One Martin Infant boy confided, "Do you know, I didn't like broccoli, but I do now.""
The Archer - East Finchley's Community Newspaper, October 2005
About Restaurant école and healthy eating in schools
This section is aimed at whoever is going to lead the changes in food provision in your school, starting with a typical presentation by Restaurant école to your school board...
About Restaurant école and healthy eating in schools
Note that if we are successful in being appointed as your caterer, Restaurant école will ask you to sign a standard Restaurant école contract before we can operate the catering services: our contract lays down the basic terms and conditions for us to successfully operate the services and has a duration of one year only.
Example of the assessment checklist that is used by Restaurant école on prospective school sites
A list of questions we ask during first contact with clients - the "Tracy Checklist"!
Disclaimer
All contents within the Restaurant ecole web site is provided for general information only and should not be treated as a substitute for legal advice from your own solicitor.
Restaurant ecole is not responsible or liable for any decision made by an individual or organisation based upon the content of our web site. You should always consult your own solicitor if you have any concerns about legal advice.
