GREENWICH: Kidbrooke school delighted with Jamie's healthy meal results (From This Is Local London)

GREENWICH: Kidbrooke school delighted with Jamie's healthy meal results

10:30am Friday 6th February 2009

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Jamie Oliver's healthy school dinners campaign has helped improve exam results in Greenwich, according to a new study. Reporter DAN KEEL took a closer look.

KIDBROOKE Secondary School shot to fame four years ago when Jamie Oliver launched his Feed Me Better project in a four-part TV documentary.

The celebrity chef began a crusade to provide lunchtime meals containing less saturated fat and sugar, and more nutrients and vitamins such as iron - a mineral which improves children's concentration.

Following the series, a further 81 schools in Greenwich joined the diet scheme, and new research by the Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER) suggests they made the right choice.

Academics studied the key stage two results of more than 13,000 11-year-olds in Greenwich between 2002 and 2007.

Pupils who sat exams in 2006/07 had been on the new diet for at least 12 months.

During this year the number of children achieving level four or five in their exams rose by eight per cent in science subjects, and six per cent in English, compared to the previous year.

Meanwhile there was a small improvement in mathematics, and the number of children absent due to ill-health dropped by 15 per cent.

Headteacher at Kidbrooke School, Trisha Jaffe, says she still keeps in contact with Jamie Oliver and that his hard work has lead to a huge difference in pupils' behaviour.

She said: "There is no doubt that in the afternoons the pupils have been calmer. "Beforehand children were eating and drinking high sugar and high carbohydrate foods and it affected conduct.

"They couldn't concentrate or sit still. But when that is removed then you get a more even behaviour.

"There is so much research which shows good diet has a positive impact on children's concentration and their ability to cope with school. It's incontrovertible.

"It is not surprising that results are improving, expulsions going down and attendance going up."

She added: "Jamie was a fantastic person to have around and I still get Christmas cards from him. He's just a really nice bloke."

Jamie's Kidbrooke crusade:

Jamie Oliver's school dinner crusade began at Kidbrooke School and saw him gradually phase out high-fat foods such as processed meat and chips.

He replaced them with more fresh meat and fresh fruit and taught children about the contents of chicken nuggets and how to identify different vegetables.

After his TV series, Greenwich Council went on to invest £90,500 on retraining dinner ladies, promoting healthy eating to parents, and replacing deep-fat fryers with healthy cooking equipment.

The council also increased the subsidy towards each child’s meal from 33p to its current level of 81p.

Meanwhile, one month after the TV series, the Government pledged £280m to go towards improving school meals across the country.

Iron-rich foods

Many of the meals on the new menu include more iron - a mineral which scientists say improves a child’s cognitive development and concentration.

Iron-rich foods include: Fish, coconut, broccoli, red meat, beans and green vegetables.

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