Healthy Eating Policy and Guidance
At Braddan School we reference the Department’s Strategy for Children and Young People and put a high emphasis on developing both children’s mental and physical health.
Snacks
We allow pupils to bring in a snack for morning break should they wish. We do ask that this consist of fruit / vegetables (including dried fruit - although this is not always so good for the teeth). We do not allow cereal bars.
Severe nut allergies affect a small number of children, and reactions can be triggered without the pupils ingesting the nuts themselves. Therefore we ask that nuts are not brought into school as part of snacks or packed lunches.
The school also runs a toast club that provides a mid morning slice of toast (wholemeal bread) for 20p per day.
Birthday / Holiday Treats
One of the issues we address is that of ‘birthday cakes’ and ‘holiday sweets’ being brought in by children. Whilst it is nice for the pupils to share treats, we feel that it is not necessary to do so, on what can become a regular basis.
We must also take into consideration the fact that we have some pupils in school who can not partake in these treats due to medical conditions / allergies or religious beliefs.
We therefore ask parents / carers not to send in such items.
Packed Lunches
We ask that parents give serious consideration to providing a healthy and nutritious lunch for their children, and support the messages about healthy eating that the children are taught as part of the National Curriculum. Sweets and chocolates are not allowed as part of pupils packed lunches, and a lot of processed food can contain high amounts of fat and salt.
Water / drinks
At Braddan we have water fountains from which pupils can fill up their water bottles. Pupils are allowed a drink or to fill up their bottle whenever they need. We ask that bottles be brought home daily / or at the end of each week in order to be thoroughly cleaned. We ask that you send only water in to drink with your child, as this is far healthier than sugary drinks. If your child must have a juice based drink, we only allow then to have these at lunch time.
We do not allow any fizzy drinks to be consumed by the children in school.
You can also choose for your child to have milk on a daily basis - this needs to be ordered at the school office.
Treats / Special Events in School
Parties are held at Christmas time where treats and party food are shared with children. We also have ‘bake sales’ in school - but these are advertised to parents so they are aware of when their children will be having such treats. Sweets may sometimes form part of a ‘prize’ - but pupils will be directed to take these home, and not eat them in school. To support the Government and Department of Health’s aim to reduce levels of weight issues in young children, the school aims to minimise the use of treats and sweets in school.
Braddan School
Reviewed September 2022