Special Guest Visits During School Meals Week
Barking and Dagenham School Meals Week took place from 14th - 18th of November. This initiative was supported locally by BD Together, who cater school meals for two thirds of the schools in Barking and Dagenham. The theme this year was “Together we make a difference”.
BD Together is at the heart of making a difference locally by working with local suppliers to offer meals with lots of local, ethical options. They provide high quality meals and are a proud and committed London Living Wage employer – “leading the way” on a fair wage for a fair days work so that the whole community benefits. Many of their team are local residents themselves - they deliver services in the community with the community.
Throughout the week pupils could enjoy delicious plant based menus, learn about recycling, reusing and reducing waste and eat locally sourced Great British produce. As part of school meals week, pupils at two of the boroughs schools were visited by some special guests. The Leader of the Council, Cllr Darren Rodwell visited St Joseph’s Primary in Barking and Mayor of Barking and Dagenham Cllr Faruk Choudhury visited George Carey primary School.
The visits were an opportunity for leaders in the borough to thank school catering staff for everything they are doing during tough times and for the role they play in helping young people to study and succeed. They also spoke to pupils at the school to learn about what they love about school meals and the difference they make to them and their learning.
Leader of the Council, Cllr Darren Rodwell said “It was great to visit St Josephs and to talk to the BD Together kitchen staff. They are the primary provider of school meals in the borough and do a great job feeding our young people healthy, nutritious and locally sourced meals. They play an important role in the community too – supporting initiatives and sponsoring events. It was great to speak with the pupils too, they told me how much they enjoy their school dinners!”
Andrew Pollard, Chief Executive of BD Group said “Thanks to Cllr Rodwell and Mr Mayor for joining us during school meals week. The team at BD Together do a great job feeding children in two thirds of the schools in Barking and Dagenham so it is great to have the support of the Council Leader and the borough’s Mayor.”
