How are School Meals assessed for Quality and Value?
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Below is an overview of the stages that the School Food Service have designed to give an all round view of the quality, value and performance of the school meals catering service in Sheffield.
The School Food Service closely monitors the school meals service provided to children in Sheffield schools who are part of the central catering contract. A full list of catering provison in Sheffield schools can be found at the bottom of the page.
First Stage – Contract Details
The central catering contract is made up of two key parts.
- The specification lists the catering provision we want to see in our schools and details the important areas for a high quality school meal service.
- The tender from our catering contractor, Chartwells shows how these important areas are to be dealt with.
This is the Contract Standard.
Second Stage – Active Monitoring
Within the School Food Service a team of Monitoring Officers have the responsibility for assessing and measuring how well the school meals service is being delivered.
Menu Planning
The School Food Service starts working with Chartwells to agree the school meal menus 6 to 8 weeks before they are introduced in schools. We have access to all recipes that make up the dishes and see all the food specifications for every item used in the school meals.
Our officers also know the legislation that governs school food, namely the Final Food and Nutrient Based Standards (Statutory Instrument 2381). This allows us to ensure the menu meets all legal requirements
The menus are revised by both the Monitoring Team and Chartwells until the 4 week menu cycle meets not only the legal requirements but also offers pupils food that is tempting, varied and interesting.
After the menus have been available in schools for 4 weeks Chartwells hold a Cooks Workshop. This gives Cook Supervisors the opportunity to provide feedback on the new menu and recipes.
The menus are revised by both the Monitoring Team and Chartwells until the 4 week menu cycle meets not only the legal requirements but also offers pupils food that is tempting, varied and interesting.
After the menus have been available in schools for 4 weeks Chartwells hold a Cooks Workshop. This gives Cook Supervisors the opportunity to provide feedback on the new menu and recipes.
School Assessments
Every school in the central catering contract is assessed at least once a year by a School Food Service Monitoring Officer. To give a true image of the day to day service provided in the school the assessment is not pre-arranged with Chartwells.
The assessments cover a wide range of details, including: -
The assessments cover a wide range of details, including: -
- Does the menu that day match the planned and approved menu?
- Do all the foods in the school kitchen match the food specifications (eg free of additives etc)? For more information on Food Standards see our specification pages.
- Does the kitchen comply with Food Hygiene Regulations and have safe food handling and storage practices?
- Does the Cook Supervisor and the catering team handle any special diets correctly and in line with strict procedures?
- Does the Cook Supervisor and catering team manage the service well?
- What do the Children think of their school meal?
A comprehensive report is then written which summarises all the above details and gives the school an individual score. Details of the scoring system are shown below: -
- Level 1 - Exceeds the Contract Standard
- Level 2 - Meets the Contract Standard
- Level 3 - Mainly meets the Contract Standard with some failures
- Level 4 - Standards fall below expectation
- Level 5 - Standards fall short to an unacceptable level
If there are any areas that need to be improved, these will be part of a development plan and shared with both Chartwells and the Headteacher. The development plan will be monitored and all elements of it completed within an agreed time period.
Contractor and Client Relationship
Every month the School Food Service and Chartwells meet formally to talk about the service. This meeting is all about the quality management framework and performance of the contract and includes all action taken after site assessments, the production of development plans, new initiatives and complaints, comments and feedback.
Third Stage - Customer Perspective
Some headteachers want to change the way school meals are provided in their school. The School Food Service Team is here to help and advise. This can be anything from:
- Changing unpopular items on the menu;
- Introducing halal meat onto the menu;
- Changing from flight trays to plates and bowls in primary schools;
- Changing the way in which pupils are served, ie family service;
- Replacing furniture;
- Reducing queuing time
Once made, the changes are built into the next school visit and monitored to see their impact.
Find Out More
We are committed to making continuous performance improvements to our service and we would encourage you to tell us what you think of school meals in Sheffield by completing one of our online surveys for school meals in Nursery Infant and Primary Schools or Secondary Schools.
If you want to find out more and talk to the team who assess the school meals central catering contract then you can contact them at:
School Food Service
Children and Young People’s Services
5th Floor Derwent House
150 Arundel Gate
Sheffield S1 2JY
Children and Young People’s Services
5th Floor Derwent House
150 Arundel Gate
Sheffield S1 2JY
0114 273 4767
or
0114 273 5817
0114 273 5817
Downloads
A list of all catering arrangements in Sheffield Schools as of October 2009 (261 KB)
Details of the Single Menu and Family Service Schools (230 KB)