Healthy School Meals

Welcome to Veg School Meals UK – Towards Self Sufficient Schools

Promoting self-sufficiency in UK schools. Our petition to the government is currently open on Change.org: Make school food-growing and self-sufficiency a dedicated national curriculum subject.

All schools have space for growing food, such as vegetables, herbs, salad and fruit. With innovative techniques such as vertical gardening, even the edges of a playground can become an allotment. The more space available the larger the potential impact on education, children’s health and school finances. Smaller schools (with no fields or green space) may seem unlikely gardens, but walls, raised beds, roofs and planters can make a huge difference… read more.

The most economical way to provide lunch for children is to cut-out all the middlemen.

To grow the produce on-site, then simply pull it from the ground, prepare it in the school kitchen and eat it! The children can do that and learn at the same time. Read more about our background, philosophy and aims here.

Join the petition:
Self sufficient school: join the petition at change.org

Get Involved

Self sufficient school: join the petition at change.org

Join the petition to promote self-sufficiency in UK schools:
Self sufficient school: join the petition at change.org

Don't waste waste: join the petition at change.org

Join the petition to make it compulsory for schools to measure food waste:
Don't waste waste: join the petition at change.org

Vegetable Planting Calendar

Download the printable Vegetable Planting Calendar here: PDF | JPG

Questionnaire for Schools

Try the Questionnaire! Which of these are already in place at YOUR school?

Welcome to Veg School Meals UK – Towards a self-sufficient school for every child.

Self-sufficient schools are within reach! All schools have space for growing food and reducing waste. With innovative techniques such as vertical gardening, even the edges of a playground can become an allotment in a self sufficient school . 

But why stop at growing food? Schools also have space for renewable energy generation, bio-resources and much more. A self sufficient school not only saves money, it can generate income. All while children learn a host of valuable life-skills.

From seed-to-plate, children would learn to plant, nurture, harvest, cook and then eat seasonal produce. They will see renewable energy generation at work (living education) and one day they’ll ask us why we ever paid electricity bills! It’s literally about ‘growing minds’ and building sustainable futures.

Instead of funding cuts, the Government must INVEST in schools so that they can REDUCE external dependency. Off-grid futures would include energy generation (wind/solar), waste management, recycling, anaerobic digestion (to create bio-gas, bio-electricity and bio-fertiliser), rain-water harvesting (to flush loos & water the plants), solar-powered watering systems, aquaponics and more.

Who are we?

Veg School Meals was started by North London parent, artist, food nut and self-confessed “life enthusiast” Ian Dunn.

Ian talks about how the seed was originally planted by his children. Their disappointing school lunches inspired his investigation into the complex business of sourcing food, and the long journey it takes from the farm to the (school) dinner plate.

Along the way he discovered a world of people who thought the same way, and had been doing so for years. The possibilities for feeding our kids at school are so much more diverse, interesting, nutritional and educational than they are at present.

There is room for so much positive change… read the full story here.

The most economical way to provide lunch for children is to cut-out all the middlemen. Grow the produce on-site, then simply pull it from the ground, prepare it in the school kitchen and eat it! The children can do that and learn at the same time.

Get in touch!

If you’d like to find out more about anything we’re doing, or you feel you could help us further our cause, please get in touch here, we’ll get back to you right away.

    self sufficient school