A Central Ingredient: New Report Shows Food Education Is Essential to Helping Children Thrive

Schools delivering high-quality food education report benefits that extend far beyond cooking skills, supporting attendance, behaviour, wellbeing, belonging and attainment.

Today, we published A Central Ingredient: The Role of Food Education in Supporting Pupil Outcomes, a new research report looking at how food education contributes to wider outcomes across school life. Based on qualitative research conducted by Public First with schools recognised for delivering strong food education, the report highlights the powerful role food learning can play in helping children to thrive.

The report is the final publication in Best Food Forward's three-part series. It follows the Food Education Mapping Project (2025), which identified the conditions needed for successful food education, and Hungry for Change (2026), which revealed strong public support for food education despite unequal access across the country.

At the heart of the findings is a simple idea: children benefit most when they can "Learn it, See it, Live it" – gaining knowledge about food, experiencing positive food cultures, and applying their learning in meaningful, real-world contexts. Schools involved in the research consistently reported that when food education is embedded in this way, the impact reaches well beyond the classroom.

What Schools Told Us

Schools described food education as a subject that pupils genuinely enjoy and look forward to. Teachers reported that food lessons can help re-engage students who struggle with attendance, with some schools using food education as part of gradual reintegration programmes for young people returning to school.

Staff also highlighted the role food education can play in supporting positive behaviour. The practical nature of food lessons means that expectations around safety, responsibility and teamwork have a clear purpose, helping pupils understand the importance of following rules and working collaboratively.

The research found that schools view food education as a valuable contributor to attainment, helping young people develop confidence, problem-solving abilities, communication skills and resilience that transfer into other areas of learning. Food education was also linked to improved understanding of nutrition and the relationship between food, concentration and readiness to learn.

Wellbeing and belonging emerged as particularly strong themes throughout the research. Schools described how food learning helps pupils experience success, take pride in their achievements and develop a stronger connection to both their peers and their school community.

Many schools serving disadvantaged communities emphasised the importance of food education in tackling health inequalities, food insecurity and wider social disadvantage, often providing ingredients and opportunities to ensure all pupils can participate fully.

A Critical Moment for Food Education

The report arrives at a time when school food is receiving increased national attention through commitments to expand breakfast provision, improve school food standards and widen access to free school meals. While these developments are welcomed, the report argues that food education must be recognised as a central part of the system supporting children's health and wellbeing.

Our recommendations

Best Food Forward is calling on the government to:

• Establish food education as a foundation subject across Key Stages 1–4, with protected curriculum time and parity with other life-skills subjects.

• Appoint specialist school food leads within multi-academy trusts and local authorities to champion a whole-school approach to food learning.

• Rebuild post-16 progression routes, including the introduction of a robust Food A Level alongside high-quality technical pathways.

Download the full report, A Central Ingredient: The Role of Food Education in Supporting Pupil Outcomes, and explore the findings.