MAPPING PRIMARY SCHOOL LUNCH CATERING PROVISIONING IN ENGLAND

Almost 40% of publicly procured meals in the UK are served in primary schools in England, making school lunch provision a critical area for reform. With the new Labour government prioritising public procurement as part of its health agenda, this research is timely and necessary. School lunch programmes have the potential to drive public health and social change, yet there are significant disparities in meal quality across England. Children in deprived areas are more than twice as likely to experience obesity during primary school. Despite their potential, school lunches are often undermined by cost-efficiency pressures, such as the challenge of providing nutritious meals for just £2.53 per child. Growing corporate involvement in school catering coincides with the displacement of Minimally Processed Foods (MPF) in favour of highly processed alternatives, worsening the issue. Currently, there is limited comprehensive evidence on the various models of school lunch provision across England, making it difficult to identify procurement approaches that could improve meal quality. This research aims to map school lunch provision models across England, focusing on school capacity, geography, urban/rural divides, faith schools, and socio-economic status markers. It will also begin to map catering models and providers. The goal is to identify areas of corporate influence and support calls for improvements in the meals they provide. This study forms part of a wider PhD project: A Food Systems Approach to Optimising MPF in England’s School Food Standards. References on request.