Teacher Zone

‘Putting the Ooo back into food’ is Love British Food’s educational programme teaching children about food. Endorsed by the Department for Education and the Department of Health, and with long-term support from Her Majesty The Queen when she was HRH The Duchess of Cornwall, the programme has provided educational materials for 30,000 schools and provides a web-portal for teachers described as ‘a wonderful resource’ by the Times Educational Supplement. The programme runs high profile national competitions for schools, most memorably Cook for The Queen in Buckingham Palace and the Harvest Lottery for Schools in Westminster Abbey.

Our guides to teaching children about food within the national curriculum and how to incorporate cooking into curriculum activities were the first resources of this kind to be published and distributed to all schools in the UK. 

We founded the largest volunteer movement educating people about food with many chef associations and food service organisations signing up to send their chefs into schools during British Food Fortnight to teach children about food.

As a result of our activities, British Food Fortnight is an established date on the school calendar. Hundreds of schools have taken part over the years using the national celebrations as an opportunity to teach young people about food and how to cook. Everything you need to plan and run your activities is on this page.

Our educational resources have been described as ‘a wonderful resource’

by The Times Educational Supplement.

Putting the Ooo back into food: A guide to teaching food within the National Curriculum

Lessons and activities for each curriculum subject with details of where to obtain the resources to support them; in-season recipes; plus contacts of organisations that can offer activity-based support and learning facilities to help you. Includes a Foreword from Her Majesty The Queen when she was HRH The Duchess of Cornwall..

Putting the Ooo back into food: A guide to teaching cookery within the National Curriculum

Practical advice on how to organise cookery activities for early years, primary and secondary children; examples from schools that have successfully incorporated cookery within their curriculum teaching. Includes a Foreword from Her Majesty The Queen when she was HRH The Duchess of Cornwall.

Putting the Ooo back into food: The Case Studies

Read about many of the wonderful ways schools have taken part. 

Inviting a Chef into your School

Advice on inviting a local chef into your school to inspire your pupils to learn to cook; plus a list of things to consider when planning a chef’s visit. Seek help from a local chef or contact one of these organisations for advice:

Academy of Culinary Arts www.royalacademyofculinaryarts.org.uk/what-we-do/adopt-a-school/

Craft Guild of Chefs www.craftguildofchefs.org

Professional Association for Catering Education www.paceuk.org/

Ideas on how to involve parents

Family participation is critical to getting children enthusiastic about preparing and enjoying food so why not set cookery homework activities that involve parents, for example help prepare a family meal using in-season produce?



A few ideas:

• Give a list of Top Tips to parents in your next school mailing or give to pupils to take home: for example: freezing small amounts of mashed veg to save time, buying fruit and veg in season to save cost and hiding veg in sauces for fussy eaters are all practical tips for parents to try with their children.
• Encourage parents to share their tips: ask parents to send in their tips and compile a school list of the best.
• Produce a school recipe book with favourite recipes from parents, grandparents, teachers and children: sell copies to raise school funds.
• Download Love British Food Ambassador Oli Blanc’s brilliantly fun and educational App Henri Le Worm http://www.henrileworm.com/ Lots of fun cooking lessons, recipes and advice on growing your own veg.

A Potted History of British Food

British foods raise some intriguing questions about our past. Why are we a nation of curry lovers with a taste for piquant pickles next to plainly cooked meats? What made us eat fish and chips? And what on earth is Marmite all about?

A Potted History of British Cooking

A fact sheet on the history of how our attitudes towards the food we eat and how we cook it have changed through the ages.

See our British Food Fortnight pages for a quick list of ideas for how your school can take part in the national food celebrations.

We hope that you enjoy putting the Ooo back into food in your school!