It’s the Christmas season and the time has come for all of our partner schools to enjoy a firm theme day favourite – the Christmas Lunch. Here at HCL, we love our theme days and the opportunity they present for us to get our students engaged in their food, and the importance of making health-conscious food choices.
We proudly serve over 450 schools a day, a combination of both primary and secondary sites and one thing we understand through years of experience is that Primary school pupils and Secondary school students have completely different requirements in the way that we execute our added value services. Especially theme days, and what better theme day than Christmas, to showcase how we ensure all our added value activities are tailored to be age appropriate.
Christmas Lunch at Highgrove Primary
Spirits were incredibly high at Highgrove Primary School, the kitchen was hustling and bustling and elf on the shelf was anxiously awaiting his release from his custom-made jail cell, the condition of his release? Inside voices in the lunch hall! The days menu consisted of turkey slices, crispy roast potatoes, vegetables, stuffing, sausages, and a mouthwatering dose of gravy, followed by multiple choices of dessert including a Christmas tree shortcake biscuit and a fruit selection pot. Staff were on hand to ensure special diets were managed and meat free options were provided across the board where necessary.
Kitchen staff shared with us that meal uptake was good, with around 50 more meals being served that day than on normal days; testament that Christmas Lunch is a theme day pupils don’t want to miss! Pupils couldn’t contain their excitement at the decorations, with Elf on The Shelf being incredibly popular; it was a highly excitable and enjoyable lunch time for all; with pupils going on to sing kitchen staffs praises when they said, “The staff are always really happy and bubbly, and they know all of our names!”.
Christmas Lunch at Copthall Secondary School
Tables dressed perfectly in a sophisticated silver for this year’s closing theme day, pupils milling around helping to organise the festivities during their free periods; the Christmas season felt truly upon us at Copthall Secondary School. The Christmas menu featured two variants of the Christmas Lunch; an all-encompassing Turkey option and an equally delicious meat free option; all finished with a dessert of their choice from the array of Christmas themed desserts.
Students sat together, socialising and engaging in conversation while they enjoyed their hot meal with one saying, “I don’t usually have a hot meal, but Christmas lunch is always really good!”, feedback that speaks highly of just how beneficial theme days are in our partner schools even for older children.
Overall, Christmas Lunches were a whopping success, pupils of all ages were engaged and singing high praises for kitchen staff and their ability to ensure theme days translate effectively across all sites! We’d like to send a massive thank you once again to all of our partner schools and kitchen teams who go above and beyond every step of the way to ensure theme day success!
Roll on 2024, and have a wonderful Christmas with your family and loved ones.