Glasgow Caledonian University school meals survey results

One of the biggest surveys of its kind has lifted the lid on the eating habits of teenagers in Scotland’s secondary schools.

Food that was “barely edible”, dry rolls with no butter and stale baguettes were among the gripes.

One pupil said sandwiches were priced, “as if it should be on sale within a Waitrose café.”

Almost one-third of pupils who did not take a school meal reported that “not liking the food” was the main reason for not taking one.

Perhaps unsurprisingly the foods that pupils wanted to see a return to were of the more unhealthy variety such as pepperoni panini, desserts, hotdogs, burgers, pies and cans of juice.

Around 15,000 pupils from 200 secondary schools shared their views on school meals with a team from Glasgow Caledonian University’s Scottish Poverty and Inequality Research Unit.

Most were not aware of government regulations that came into force last year and aim to reduce sugar intake and ensure pupils have access to ‘five a day’ fruit and veg during the school day.

More than 60% did not feel that food had become healthier while some pupils said that banning unhealthy snacks encouraged high street splurges on junk food.

One pupil said: “I feel they have gone too far with the healthy eating as there is no harm in having one brownie at break.

“Having only healthy options has just resulted in people going down to the shops and buying twice the amount of unhealthy food.”

Another youngster said the school had forbidden trips outwith the school gates but said pupils flouted the ban, “because the food is so horrible”.

Although some pupils wanted food to be healthier, more expressed concern over the quality of the food that was served, with older pupils most likely to have complaints.

Some reported that the pandemic had led to a deterioration in quality.

Those with dietary requirements were even less positive with almost half ( 48%) describing it as bad or really bad compared to 34% of those without specific needs.

Vegans were more likely to rate food poorly (61%) followed by those who are on gluten-free diets.

Although researchers said the low numbers necessitate caution in interpretation, pupils identifying as Christian (32%) were less likely than those not identifying with a religion to rate the food as bad or really bad while this was even higher ( 45%) for Muslim pupils.

The Scottish Government has pledged to roll out universal free school dinners across primary schools. Cost was described by researchers as a major concern for secondary pupils who are entitled to free meals.

Some said the allowance was not always adequate and said the price of food had risen considerably over their time in school.

One pupil said: “For some people it has become unaffordable, and they have resort to other means of getting lunch.

“I get £2.45 a day as part of my free meals, which is not enough for something at break for a drink and a meal at lunch.”

Another said; “A sandwich was once £1.20 which is reasonable, now they are £2.70 which I think for a school sandwich is shocking.

“Right now a main meal is £1.80 and then a drink is £0.80 which is £2.60. So, people with free school meals [allowance] cannot get a main meal and a drink without bringing in extra money.”

Those who were not entitled to free school meals were more likely to rate the quality of food as bad or really bad (35%, compared to 29%).

Some pupils reported spending their free school allowance during the morning break and those who qualified were more likely not to have eaten breakfast before coming to school.

Pupils wanted to be consulted over the choice of food on offer and 81% said they had not been approached. 

The vast majority of students were positive about catering staff with one commenting: “Alice the lunch lady is everything that is right with the world.”

Some younger pupils and those with Autism Spectrum Disorders described the canteen environment as intimidating with “bullying and pushing” common while others said 40 minutes was too short for a lunch break because of lengthy canteen queues.

Professor John McKendrick, of GCU, who led the research, said: “What we wanted to do was open up the debate. What we are not doing is providing firm recommendations of what should be done.

“While we are presenting a national picture we must remember there is incredible diversity within schools.

"The range of returns was quite dramatic from school to school and what that really requires is a school-level of intelligence to make sense of the issues that are on their doorstep.”