Gold Award for commitment to healthy eating
Chartwells Independent, the contract caterers for the Royal Hospital School have been presented with a prestigious award in recognition of the wide variety of healthier food choices it offers to pupils and staff.
The award was presented today to Debbie Bellamy, Catering and Hospitality Manager, Matt Wilby, Head Chef, and Peter Church, Bursar, by Cllr Frank Lawrenson, Babergh District Council Portfolio Holder for Environment and Emma Richbell Senior Food and Safety Officer for Babergh District Council.
Chartwells Independent is the latest Suffolk business to receive a gold Eat Out, Eat Well accolade from Babergh District Council for the food available to the 750 pupils and 350 members of staff at the co-educational boarding and day School for 11 to 18 year olds.
It comes after environmental health officers visited the School to carry out rigorous assessments looking in detail at the choices people are offered, ways in which food is cooked and how healthier options are promoted.
Cllr Frank Lawrenson, Babergh District Council’s Portfolio Holder for Environment said, “It was a real pleasure to present Royal Hospital School with a Gold ‘Eat Out, Eat Well’ award as schools are the perfect place to make sure children are eating freshly produced and nutritious food on a daily basis – particularly as we now know that diet can directly affect a student’s academic performance. Very well done to all those involved, this is a tremendous achievement and will hopefully ensure these children go on to make healthier and more informed choices in later life.”
Debbie Bellamy, Catering and Hospitality Manager, and Matt Wilby, Head Chef, said ‘We are immensely proud to receive this award which further enforces our 27 year commitment to the Royal Hospital School supporting young people and the wider school community to make healthier food choices’.
Peter Church, Director of Finance and Operations (Busar), at the Royal Hospital School, added “We are delighted this Gold Award has recognised the value we place on providing wholesome food of the very highest standard for our pupils and staff. We have worked closely with our catering partners, Chartwells, over the last few years to enhance the standard of our catering supported by a £1m investment in our magnificent dining hall. We support ethical buying, and we use locally grown, environmentally sustainable food wherever possible. We always use fresh food, with our menus linked to seasonal produce.”