A whole school approach to health and wellbeing: celebrating another fantastic year for Barnet’s Healthy Early Years and Healthy Schools London programmes.
On Wednesday 3rd July, Barnet Public Health and Health Education Partnership held the annual Barnet Healthy Early Years and Schools Celebration Event at Hendon Town Hall.
Healthy Early Years and Schools London are award programmes that work with settings and schools to improve children and young people’s wellbeing. The programmes focus on a whole school approach to various areas of health such as healthy eating, emotional health and wellbeing and physical activity.
Activities and achievements have included:
- Menu changes following analysis to comply with School Food Standards and to provide healthier options
- An increase in children brushing teeth twice a day through oral health initiatives and training of staff
- Introducing healthy cooking sessions and growing fruits and vegetables to cook with
- Focus on staff wellbeing and the work environment
- Using the SMILE portion trays to increase uptake of fruit and vegetables at lunch
- Improving the emotional wellbeing of pupils to manage day to day challenges, resolve conflict with peers and develop into resilient young adults
The celebration event recognised the achievements and hard work that settings and schools have undertaken to gain their awards.
The awards were presented by the Mayor of Barnet, Cllr Tony Vourou, staff shared some examples of best practice in their settings, and some of the pupils gave their own accounts of what being part of the programmes had meant to them – and helped lead a waka waka movement break to get everyone up and moving!
With thanks and appreciation to all those who help to make it possible, including:
- Cllr Tony Vourou, Mayor of Barnet, for joining us for the full event and presenting the awards
- The Early Years Settings and Schools who presented: Mara Nursery (Staff Wellbeing), Wingfield & Stonegrove Children’s Centre (Healthy Eating), Beis Yaakov Primary School (Emotional Health and Wellbeing/Resilient Schools), and Michelle Leon (Health Improvement Officer) (Healthy Eating at Ashmole Primary and Moss Hall Infant Schools)
The Barnet Public Health Team would like to congratulate all the early years settings and schools who are working towards or have achieved an award in the Healthy Early Years London (HEYL) or Healthy Schools London (HSL) Programme. We appreciate the time you took out of your hectic schedules to join us, yet more importantly your commitment to the programmes and to improving the health and wellbeing of the children, families, and staff within your communities. The Barnet Public Health Team are deeply appreciative of the difference you are making to health and wellbeing, both now and for the future.
Lauren Neill, Health Improvement Officer, Barnet Council Public Health Team