News & Views

LACA- the school food people, have launched a call for children, caterers and parents, food suppliers and schools to support great school lunches with a series of celebratory events, positive action and below are the list of expected outcomes.

British Food Fortnight 2023 takes place 16th September to 1st October 2023. This is the 22nd year of the national celebration of the diverse and delicious food that Britain produces. British Food Fortnight 2023 is set to be the biggest and most popular yet with communities and organisations across the country making plans to take part.

The provision of high-quality catering services within education facilities plays a significant role in the overall well-being and academic success of students. As the demand for nutritious and diverse meals continues to grow, educational institutions must recognise the crucial role they play in tendering catering services. This article aims to shed light on the importance of this process and emphasise the involvement of Parent Governors in making informed decisions that benefit both students and the school community.

Red Box pride ourselves on bespoke support for our Clients and often find once we build a relationship with a Trust, School, or Business, we can continue to support and advise so that services remain on track and take some uncertainty out of the agenda. Here are some potential areas where we can provide assistance:  

If you have been considering putting in a new system, but feel there may be large time commitment to you and staff to implement the change, Red Box can support with this, or link you with a catering contractor who can complete the system changes for you. So what would be the benefits in doing so?

Offshore catering and facilities are very important to staff working there, as they provide them with food, comfort, and welfare in a challenging and remote environment. Red Box have worked with a range of partners to ensure the quality and comfort levels reach competitive standards for your staff, while working financially for our clients.

The .GOV guidance below summarises your considerations. Red Box have provided further annotation to support you in determining if you are in a position to tender and how long the process will take.

'Why can't we have Yorkshire puddings on more than one day?!'. As of January 2015, all maintained schools, new academies, and free schools are required to follow the standards of the School Food Plan. It was launched by the Department of Education and in line with the requirements for School Food Regulations 2014. As part of our auditing on a termly or sometimes monthly basis, Red Box analyse the school menu and offer seen on the day of our visit to confirm the standards are being met. So what are the School Food Standards?

New Government procurement plans for the public sector are potentially 'catastrophic' for smaller suppliers to the Public Sector.

Our School-based clients and Catering Contractor partners may be in the best position to share this information with their own communities. Kids can eat for free or a very low cost this half term as cost of living hits hard.