Many Hands Make Work

Many hands make work New standards for school food and staff September 2009

All change Over the last three years, compulsory nutritional standards and other reforms have been introduced in schools in England, following recommendations by a government school meals’ review panel. The final part of the staged changes was the introduction of nutrient-based standards (maximum and minimum levels of nutrients, served daily or over a week) in secondary schools by September 2009. The requirement to serve vegetables, fruit, milk, dairy products and water was already in force as well as a ban on junk food, inferior meat products, deep-fried food and table salt. School food has been significantly reformed and guidance is available from the Department for Children Schools and Families and the School Food Trust (SFT).

UNISON’s campaign UNISON has welcomed school food reform and taken every opportunity to emphasise that the increased demand on staff must be recognised and measures taken to meet it. A Just Desserts campaign was launched and a survey of school meals staff was carried out. A report, Voices from the School Kitchen: the impact of school reform on staff followed and suggested that most of the respondents were finding the move to tough new regulated menus highly stressful and challenging. UNISON then commissioned further work to establish appropriate staffing levels for the reformed service. Our campaign for free school meals is still live. The transformation of the service will not have the desired social effect if charges are beyond the reach of low-income families. A change in the law allows authorities to provide free school meals, which would be the most direct way to improve children’s diets. 2

Having achieved so much for the service, UNISON is deeply concerned that catering staff should be integral, protected and supported through the changes and their terms and conditions, patterns of work and training should reflect their part in the process.

Are there enough hours in the school food day? Our school meals members identify short hours as their biggest problem. Work intensified under competition and financial pressures, agency and temporary staff increased, as did variable contracts; ensuring no spare capacity or slack. Research in 2005 confirmed that the school meals workforce has come under severe attack over the last 25 years, with widespread reduction in hours and more casual labour, unlikely to be trained or valued. The school meals review panel’s report said that caterers would need to change their recipes and cooking practices and that kitchen staff would need more time to prepare meals. It said that, “The transformation of school food should also create jobs. The use of more fresh, locally produced and unprocessed food will require more kitchen staff working more hours, and will have wider benefits to local economies. This must be expected and built in to workforce planning”. The move to regulating food for the whole school day will also have implications for staffing levels. The panel recommended that schools and caterers conduct a needs analysis looking at skills, equipment and preparation time. The government replied that in many areas this work was underway and should be encouraged. The SFT says that all staff should be made aware of the new standards and their impact upon workload. 3

But funding an improved school food service is a major issue and additional staffing costs must compete with those for training, ingredients, equipment, new provision, like drinking water and premises.

Members should seek advice from their representative or branch if duties have increased in size or complexity without additional staffing resource.

Are staff being trained to meet new demands? While some services have good training standards, where prime cooking has declined, deskilling has occurred. Reheating cookchill dishes in a ‘regeneration’ kitchen and working with processed food requires very different tasks to cooking from scratch. The review panel recommended that there should be a training needs assessment which should include staff ability to help children make healthy choices and that: • All staff would require training in food safety, knife skills, vegetable and fruit preparation and cooking methods which impact on nutrition • All staff, except general assistants, would need more advanced craft skills • Heads of kitchen, deputies and those aspiring to these posts would need supervisory food safety, menu planning, marketing and more advanced large scale cookery • There should be a nutritional qualification encompassing the standards that at least head of kitchen should have • Catering management would need skills in using the standards and menu analysis to advise school based staff. The School Food Trust has established a number of training centres and partnerships in the School FEAST Network. They provide a core offer of qualifications: Providing a Healthier School Meals Service at level 1; an adapted Support Workers in Schools 4

at level 2 and 3 and NVQs on Professional Cookery and Food Processing and Cooking at level 2. UNISON is in no doubt that time and money and the lack of a stable workforce are major obstacles to the take up of training. DCSF guidance says that contract specifications should ask questions about workforce training. Contractors should be able to show how they will ensure staff possess the necessary expertise, knowledge of social and cultural diversity, qualifications and experience in schools or a similar catering environment. There should also be a staff training programme and sufficient literacy, numeracy and language skills to understand, for example, health and safety requirements. All catering staff must be adequately trained in food hygiene. If the service is changing radically, moving from fast food to cooking from scratch, a review of basic training is undoubtedly required. If members are not receiving adequate training or are having difficulties with funding or time off for courses, they should seek advice from a UNISON union learning rep, steward or their branch.

Will your employer carry out a risk assessment on the changes in the kitchen and dining area? Kitchens are dangerous places. Slips, trips, cuts, burns, bruises, strains and stress are all too common, but every effort must be made to protect against them. Employers have a legal duty to assess all health and safety risks that may arise from new cooking processes, equipment or premises adaptations. Cooking from scratch is undoubtedly more dangerous than serving fast food or sandwiches. 5

Slips and trips are the biggest cause of injury in the kitchen and working under pressure will increase the risks. Staff need to know how to deal with spills and should have suitable footwear— safety or overshoes. Chemicals and some foodstuffs, like flour, can be hazardous. Any new equipment should be assessed and staff trained in how to use it. The layout of the kitchen, surfaces, temperature and ventilation should all be reviewed. Whether there are enough staff, on sufficient hours, is a very important risk factor. Safety representatives should ensure that a “suitable and sufficient” assessment is made and acted upon, that training and information is adequate and members know how to report accidents or hazards. Members should know (ask rep or branch) who to contact in UNISON for health and safety advice.

School team approach to transforming school food The review panel recommended that catering staff be central to the whole school approach, that their practical skills should be valued and utilised to the full and that they should be represented on groups like School Nutrition Action Groups. The government accepted the recommendation and said that it would encourage schools to make this a priority. Government says that there should be a whole staff approach to the school meals service. As well as those directly involved, like caterers and midday supervisors, teachers and teaching support and office staff all have a role to play. Cleaners and caretakers may need to upgrade their service and should also receive appropriate training. Catering or cleaning contracts can be renegotiated and if they are up for re-tendering, they should contain requirements on training, health and safety and working conditions.

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UNISON reps or branches should keep members informed of any discussions with schools, local authorities or contractors on the changes to the school meals service. This should be a great time for school catering staff with their skills and social role regaining value. But change should not take place at the expense of staff health or welfare. UNISON will support members through the introduction of new nutritional standards and help them to achieve new standards of your own.

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Designed by UNISON Communications. Published and printed by UNISON, 1 Mabledon Place, London WC1H 9AJ. CU/September 2009/18590/2531/UNP 10805.