01642 482002
Errington Primary School has welcomed a talented new addition to its catering team, bringing a wealth of culinary experience and a fresh approach to school meals. With 15 years in the hospitality industry working in pubs and restaurants, Richard Earl has quickly become an integral part of the Errington family, revolutionising the school dining experience.
Since joining Errington, Richard has been focused on creating a balanced menu that satisfies government nutritional guidelines while also appealing to the varied palates of our young diners. “Every day brings a new challenge to the menu,” he explains. “I’m constantly trying to find that balance between nutritious food and ensuring full bellies at the end of the day.”
One of the most impressive aspects of Richard’s approach has been his engagement with the school community. During a recent parents’ evening, he took the initiative to showcase a selection of school meals and speak directly with families. This personal approach allowed him to better understand what children eat at home and what might entice packed lunch pupils to try school dinners.
“I’ve got a list of children who only eat certain things or have specific dietary requirements,” Richard shares. “I’ll break my back to make sure they’ve got a meal or menu that keeps both them and their parents happy.” This personalised strategy has yielded impressive results, with an additional ten children switching from packed lunches to school meals following these conversations.
As a parent himself, Richard understands the challenges families face and the importance of ensuring children receive a proper meal during their school day. His commitment extends to accommodating allergies and food preferences, keeping detailed records to ensure every child’s needs are met.
The chef has also involved pupils in menu planning, asking teachers to gather feedback from their classes about favourite foods. While some ambitious requests (such as McDonald’s!) might be beyond the scope of school catering, many pupil suggestions are being incorporated into upcoming menus. “Over the next few weeks, the children’s menu choices are starting to come into play,” Richard explains, balancing these preferences with nutritional guidelines.
Currently, Monday’s pizza day ranks as the most popular mealtime, but new options are continuously being introduced.
Richard’s team has adapted brilliantly to the new approach, bringing their valuable knowledge of the children’s preferences to complement his culinary expertise. “The team has been fantastic,” he acknowledges. “They know the children better than I do because they’ve been here for quite a while.”
Looking ahead, Richard hopes to reach out to more parents of children with specific eating patterns to further understand their home eating habits and create even more inclusive meal options. This collaborative approach between chef, parents, and pupils exemplifies our commitment to nurturing the whole child.
At Atomix Educational Trust, we are immensely proud of what Richard Earl has accomplished in the short time he’s been with us at Errington Primary. His innovative approach to school catering, genuine care for children’s wellbeing, and determination to provide meals that are both nutritious and appealing demonstrates the positive impact that passionate staff can have on our school communities. We look forward to seeing how his creative influence continues to transform the dining experience for our pupils in the months ahead.
In Year 3, the children based their Food Technology on Roald Dahl’s ‘Charlie and the Chocolate Factory’. They tested a range of chocolate treats to decide on the best ingredients to use in their own ultimate chocolate bar design. The children designed and made their bars which they then evaluated with taste testing. All the bars were delicious.
The Royal Symphonia did a 6 week music course with Year 5. The music performed was created by the Year 5 children and was inspired by the world they live in.
Errington Primary are in the top 4% of all primary schools with 96% passing the phonics screening test.
Hello Sarah
Over these past two days I’ve spent a good deal of time working with your colleagues in relation to several children who attend Errington Primary School. Many of the children’s presenting needs are hugely complicated and have required a good deal of unpicking to understand and provide appropriate support and intervention. I have to say that the evidence of their progress, each shared within multi-agency forums with parents at the centre of the dialogue, has been exceptional, and the quality of the work described by your team is outstanding. Parents have consistently felt heard, connected and very ably supported, and have actively participated in the planning of their child’s next steps. The creativity and efficiency that surrounds this work is evident from all staff members, who each demonstrate very considered understanding and huge amounts of experience in delivering approaches that work, without drawing attention to difference. What’s more, each of the children has shown exceptional progress across many areas of their development.
This work is bang on point, and totally illustrates all that inclusive approaches seek to achieve. At no point has a question been raised about whether your school is right for the children; rather, the focus has been on, with whom can we better connect, and how can we improve things further, here within in our local community zone?
From where I sit Sarah, this work is highly commendable. Our limited and very precious time has been utilised to the full, within extremely well-organised and well attended space, complete with devoted attention from knowledgeable and heavily-invested staff members.
As you will note, I have copied in my senior colleagues within the LA for their attention. As I don’t have all of the email addresses for those colleagues directly involved, I’m hoping that you will happily share this content more widely across your team and as appropriate. I also hope that you will perhaps take this opportunity to share with your own senior colleagues to demonstrate the impact of your own leadership and management.
I look forward to our continued partnership.
Climate change is a real and undeniable threat to our entire civilization. The effects are already visible and will be catastrophic unless we act now. Through education, innovation and adherence to our climate commitments, we can make the necessary changes to protect the planet. These changes also provide huge opportunities to modernize our infrastructure which will create new jobs and promote greater prosperity across the globe.
Windy Hill Lane
Redcar
TS11 7BL
Phone: 01642 482002
Email: errington.office@atomix.ac.uk