Michelin star chef and food activists serve the ultimate school food standards stunt to star-studded guests

Michelin chef Angela Hartnett and young food activists serve the ultimate stunt to star-studded guests as major new project launches to help schools achieve new school food standards

As schools across England prepare for Government’s new school food standards, Michelin Chef Angela Hartnett has joined forces with young food activists, the School Food Project and creative agency Bartle Bogle Hegarty in a bold prank to teach diners in a star studded restaurant a lesson in school food.

The stunt aimed to demonstrate the potential of the new standards to ensure every child has a nutritious meal at lunchtime.

The invite was to a new ‘dining experience’ from Angela Hartnett at a ‘pop up’ in Covent Garden called Centena (an anagram of Canteen), where attendees were told they would receive ‘an unforgettable lesson in food and flavour.’

Angela Hartnett and youth activists prank a room full of foodies amid new school food standards

The event was a who’s who of the food and influencer world with guests including Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall, Prue Leith, Thomasina Miers, Bettina Campolucci Bordi, Alexander Armstrong and Dr Ranj, as well as sports stars and Olympians Laviai and Lina Nielson.

Instead of the promised delicious culinary experience, guests were dished up processed chicken burgers, stale burger buns, soggy chips and cold, congealed baked beans.

The menu was devised by young Bite Back food activists based on real food they’d been served at school under the previous school food standards, which shockingly were never monitored, leading to a lottery in school food provision where standards vary hugely from school to school.

Reactions from the group of heavyweight foodies were secretly filmed for a hilarious video which has been published today.

After the initial shock of receiving such poorly cooked, stodgy cuisine, guests were then served up a flavoursome curry with rice, flatbread and raita then fresh fruit with yoghurt  based on Chefs in Schools recipes to demonstrate what food could, and should, look like when new standards come into play alongside a robust framework for monitoring.

Looking forward to the first update to school food standards in over a decade, the young activists behind the campaign sought to demonstrate the importance of these upcoming changes. From the beginning of term, Free School Meals have also been extended to all families in England receiving Universal Credit.

This means an additional 500,000 children are being protected from hunger. This is a once in a generation opportunity to make school food a source of national pride and to improve child health at scale.

The School Food Project has today launched an online platform offering holistic support for schools and caterers as they prepare for the new standards so that every child can receive a nutritious and delicious meal at lunchtime. Go to schoolfoodproject.org.uk to find out more or sign your school up for support.

The School Food Project is a coalition of charities and food organisations and includes Bite Back, Chefs in Schools, the Jamie Oliver Group, School Food Matters and The Food Foundation. The groundbreaking partnership will support schools to transform school food, improve food education and serve delicious meals to children and young people up and down the country.

The project is funded by philanthropic foundations including the Henry Smith Foundation, the Christopher & Henry Oldfield Trust, the Ampney Brook Foundation, Macdoch Foundation, Westminster Foundation, The Broomton Foundation and Bloomberg.

Children eat around a third of their daily food at school, making school food one of the greatest opportunities to improve children’s health and wellbeing. Currently children are being let down and we know that fewer than 1 in 10 teenagers eat their 5-a-day and 95% consume above recommended levels of free sugars.

By the time they are 11, over a third of children in England are experiencing overweight and obesity and in the UK the leading reason for hospital admission in children aged 5-9 years is tooth decay. A recent survey commissioned by The Food Foundation also found that  80% of teachers agree unhealthy food at lunch and breaktime can lead to disruptive behaviour, while 85% say diet affects pupils’ ability to concentrate.

The young food activists involved in the planning of the stunt are from Bite Back - a youth-led movement campaigning to change the way unhealthy foods are made, marketed and sold, especially to children.

Bite Back youth activist, Zainab,19, who took part in the stunt said: "We had so much fun creating our restaurant and serving guests some of the school food that young people have actually experienced. Seeing the reactions from so many well-known chefs, celebrities and food experts was really funny - but it also proved our point.

"Every child deserves school food that helps them learn, feel well and enjoy their day. But right now, what you are served can depend on which school you attend. Young people have seen some brilliant school meals, but we’ve also seen food that simply isn’t good enough.

"That postcode lottery isn’t fair. The Government now needs to deliver strong new school food standards, make sure they are properly monitored and give schools the support they need to serve food every young person can look forward to."

Naomi Duncan, CEO of Chefs in Schools, one of the School Food Project partners said: "Free School Meals have now been extended to all children from households on Universal Credit and Government is introducing new school food standards, alongside which we hope to see a plan for a robust monitoring system.

"This is a huge moment for school food. What we consistently hear from children and young people is that they care about taste, flavour and nutrition and are far more willing to be adventurous with food than we might imagine.

"New standards mean an exciting opportunity to translate Government ambition into tasty food that children will enjoy. The School Food Project has been set up to support schools and caterers to make that transition, and we hope many schools will sign up to our Hub for support as the new standards are released."

Angela Hartnett, Michelin Chef, said: "There are many school cooks doing a great job, but we still see too many kids being served food that’s packed full of salt, sugar and chemicals, with a low nutritional value.

"With the government promising new school food standards, we’re hoping to see all kids eat a lovely, healthy, nutritious meal every day at school. We are what we eat.

"Making changes to school food is an opportunity to get kids eating healthier food from a young age. If we solve this problem early, we solve so many problems later on in life.

"We just have to work together and change our mindset about what’s possible in school food.”

Prue Leith, TV personality and Chef said: "School food is vital: if children don't eat well, they don't learn well and their health suffers.

"The event was a graphic demonstration of just that - we were served a dreadful, tasteless burger initially that no one, especially the young people, wanted to eat.

"But then we were offered a delicious, healthy curry, that everyone tucked into. Food can be tasty, nutritious and that's exactly what children need to fuel learning."

Anna Taylor, Executive Director of The Food Foundation, said: "Today marks another massive step on the journey to improve children's health across the country.

"Good school food standards are critical to making that happen and the School Food Project is there to help schools train up their kitchen teams and work with pupils to improve menus.

"This all needs to be underpinned by a robust approach to monitoring and supporting schools to improve."

Henry Dimbleby, author of National Food Strategy, said: "A free school meal can be life-changing for a child's prospects - not only for learning at school, but proven to increase lifetime income too. That's why it matters so much.

"At the start of this month, 500,000 more children in the UK became eligible for Free School Meals, but to make it count we have to make sure that food tastes great and is nutritious.

"Some schools serve incredible food; others serve food that's boring and beige, assuming that is all children will want to eat, yet over the last decade I've seen time and again that just isn't true.

"The School Food Project wants to help those schools and train them up to offer meals that children really want to eat. If we can do this as a country, we can achieve something amazing, and make children's lives much, much better."

Hugh Fearnley Whittingstall, chef and TV personality said: "Seeing that plate go down was a real shock to us all, and rightly so. I’ve campaigned for better school food for years, but I didn’t realise some schools were still serving food that bad.

"The good news is that it is possible for all schools to serve fresh, nutritious and inspiring food - it just takes government commitment to updated standards and effective monitoring.

"I want to see fresh vegetables, good meat, variety, colour and inspiration on every plate. This is absolutely achievable - and the potential to transform the health, wellbeing and future opportunities of a whole generation is enormous.

"Through the School Food Project there is now the support and training to make it happen. Now we need to get on with it."

Alexander Armstrong, actor, comedian and broadcaster said: "This was an extraordinary event. We arrived expecting a new Angela Hartnett restaurant, but were instead served what some children might get as a school meal - bland, tepid burgers, dry beans and rock-hard buns that no one could eat.

"Then a group of remarkable school children explained why quality school food matters, and we were then thankfully served a wonderful curry that showed what good school food can be.

"This is about more than keeping young minds alert; it’s about educating the palate and developing a lasting interest in food and flavour.

"We must champion the School Food Project, so the excellent chefs already working in schools can put their skills into food that truly deserves it."

Karen Martin, CEO of BBH London and Dublin said: "The work the School Food Project is doing is vital: to show parents that good school food really is possible.

"We’re so proud to have supported members of the Project’s coalition for many years now and look forward working together moving forwards."

NOTES TO EDITORS

Please contact: Juliet Grant, Senior Communications Manager, The Food Foundation, on 07929 075489 or email juliet.grant@foodfoundation.org.uk

AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW
Interviews with partners and young food activists available on request

STILLS AVAILABLE HERE

SOCIAL MEDIA
Twitter: @Food_Foundation  
Instagram: food.foundation  
LinkedIn: The Food Foundation
Bluesky: The Food Foundation
TikTok: thefoodfoundation
YouTube: @foodfoundation91

About The School Food Project
School Food Project is on a mission to support schools to transform the quality of school food and food education. Funded by a group of philanthropic foundations led by the Henry Smith Foundation, the project will be delivered by a coalition of organisations with expertise in delivering outstanding food and food education including Bite Back, Chefs in Schools, the Jamie Oliver Group, School Food Matters, and The Food Foundation. This independent initiative is working to turbo-charge new policy commitments to expand free school meals and improve school food standards. Together, we are driving lasting change so that every child, in every state school, has access to nutritious food, impactful food education, and the opportunity to thrive, now and in the future.

About The Food Foundation
The Food Foundation is a charity working to influence food policy and business practice, shaping a sustainable food system which makes healthy diets affordable and accessible for all. We work in partnership with researchers, campaigners, community bodies, industry, investors, government and citizens to galvanise the UK’s diverse agents of change, using surprising and inventive ideas to drive fundamental shifts in our food system. These efforts are based on the continual re-evaluation of opportunities for action, building and synthesising strong evidence, convening powerful coalitions, harnessing citizens’ voices and delivering impactful communications.
Registered Charity Number 1187611.

About Chefs in Schools
Chefs in Schools was established in June 2018 with the aim of transforming food, food culture and food education in schools through training, guidance and support. It’s a fast-growing, solutions-focused charity, targeting areas with high levels of socio-economic deprivation, aiming to improve child health. To date, it’s helped well over 100,000 children to access better school food. The charity also campaigns for lasting reforms to improve school food. It’s backed by some of the country’s leading food influencers, including Prue Leith, Thomasina Miers and Yotam Ottolenghi, and has worked alongside Jamie Oliver to improve school food. Its won numerous awards, including the Urban Food Awards Children’s Food Champion 2020, Third Sector Big Impact & Charity Partnership of the Year Award 2021, the BBC Food & Farming Outstanding Achievement Award 2023 and one of CODE’s Happiest Places to Work in 2024. The charity was co-founded by Henry Dimbleby - co-author of the School Food Plan and author of the National Food Strategy, Nicole Pisani - former Head Chef at NOPI, and Louise Nichols - Executive Head Teacher of the Leap Federation of Schools.

About School Food Matters
Founded in 2007, School Food Matters believes that school food can unlock a happier, healthier, more sustainable future for every child. The charity wants a school food system that delivers for all children, so they can enjoy nutritious, delicious and sustainable school food and leave with an informed and positive relationship with food. To achieve this, School Food Matters campaigns for a better school food system, bringing the voices of children, parents, and teachers to government policy, and delivers fully funded food education programmes in schools across the country.

About Bite Back
Bite Back is a youth-led movement protecting children’s health by changing the way unhealthy food is made, marketed, and sold. Every day, Bite Back exposes the tactics of junk food giants that flood the world with unhealthy food, put young lives at risk, and avoid accountability. Bite Back calls out manipulation and bites back. Its Youth Board of more than 70 young campaigners, aged 14 to 17, alongside more than 30,000 pupils in its Schools programme, use their lived experience of a broken food system to speak truth to power – from local schools to Parliament.

About BBH
Bartle Bogle Hegarty (BBH) is one of the world’s most famous creative agencies. Founded in London in 1982, BBH also has offices in Dublin, New York, Mumbai, Singapore, Stockholm and Shanghai. For 42 years BBH has made the public laugh, cry and their hearts flutter. We’ve made endlines, headlines, history, celebs and number ones in the charts, all to help our clients win at what they do. Our logo, the black sheep, represents our Zag philosophy: our belief in the power of difference. This BBH thinking, combined with our craft and creative conviction, has secured BBH clients including Audi, Burger King, Paddy Power, Monzo and Tesco. The activation by BBH London was based on a simple insight: while the debate around school food is often framed around children's experiences, parents may respond differently if they were confronted with the same food themselves.