Community organisations adopt Vic Kids Eat Well
Ballarat schools and community organisations have jumped to join Vic Kids Eat Well, with 19 local organisations now part of the exciting state-wide movement. Local primary, secondary and special schools, outside school hours care, sports clubs and a sport and recreation facility have all joined to boost tasty and nutritious food and drink options so Ballarat kids are fuelled to learn, play and be active.
Local organisations Ballarat Community Health and the City of Ballarat have provided on-the-ground health promotion support to review menus and help organisations select simple swaps as part of the initiative, like adding more veggies to meals and encouraging kids to rehydrate with water.
Vic Kids Eat Well is supported by the Victorian Government and delivered by Cancer Council Victoria, in partnership with Nutrition Australia.
Dimity Gannon, Head of Healthy Places at Cancer Council Victoria, said Vic Kids Eat Well aims to support community organisations to boost delicious, healthy food and drink options in the places that kids spend their time.
“I extend my congratulations to the Ballarat community for their collaboration in making bite-sized changes that have a positive impact on the health of local kids,” Ms Gannon said.
“Delicious, nourishing food helps fuel kids’ concentration, improves mood and gives them the energy to have a great day at school or enjoy all the benefits of community sport,” she said.
Ballarat Grammar educates 1800 students and is one of the participating schools. Their Deputy Head of the Senior School, Sandra Warwick said she joined Vic Kids Eat Well so the school could be guided to provide tasty, nutritious meals to students and to add variety to the canteen with renewed momentum after being dedicated Achievement Program members for many years.
As part of Vic Kids Eat Well, the students at Ballarat Grammar now enjoy new menu items like breakfast frittata with roasted pumpkin, fetta, and eggs; vegetarian salads and rolls with roasted vegetables and chickpeas, fresh sushi, frozen yoghurt and fresh Greek yoghurt. The school’s drink range has also expanded to include low sugar options such as sparkling mineral water.
“The number of students, and even staff, purchasing meals from our canteen has increased significantly since we made improvements through Vic Kids Eat Well. This talks to the appetite we have for delicious and colourful meals and snacks that make us feel good,” Mrs Warwick said.
An impressive 90% of the canteen meals at Ballarat Grammar now contain vegetables, up from 50%.
“Keeping in regular contact with our health promoters at Ballarat Community Health has been an enormous support for me. Through the Achievement Program we’ve had a broad long-term approach to wellbeing; to refresh our canteen with simple tips, Vic Kids Eat Well slotted in perfectly,” Mrs Warwick said.
Alexandra Bell, Health Promotion Officer at Ballarat Community Health said other Ballarat community organisations can join Vic Kids Eat Well and the broader Achievement Program for free. They’ll receive local support from a health promoter.
“Over 4000 local kids have already benefited from refreshed menus or healthier environments as part of Vic Kids Eat Well and the Achievement Program. Best of all, the community leaders we support are telling us that Ballarat kids are enjoying the improvements. It’s uplifting to know we’re giving kids a healthy start, with things like veggie-loaded meals in schools and kids picking produce from their school garden and preparing crunchy and colourful snacks at outside school hours care.”
“One of the great things about Vic Kids Eat Well is that schools, outside school hours care services and other community organisations can decide when and how they want to work through the bite-sized actions with on-the-ground health promotion support. If an organisation doesn’t have a canteen, fundraising is a great starting point,” Ms Bell said.
As part of Vic Kids Eat Well, member organisations can make healthy and delicious swaps to their food and drink options for kids and celebrate wins along the way with vouchers.
Learn more or join for free at vickidseatwell@cancervic.org.au or 1300 185 725.