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We are running FREE TastEd training sessions across Essex between September 2026 and September 2027. Please use the link below or the QR Code in the attached flyer to sign up to enrol your setting in a training session.

TastEd Early Years - Training Sign-up  – Fill in form

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Catherine Lippe is a Registered Nutritionist and Head of Nutrition and Policy at Nursery Kitchen. With nearly two decades of experience, she specialises in early years nutrition, shaping menus, influencing policy, and championing better food standards to support children’s health and wellbeing. Nursery Kitchen creates fresh, nutritionally balanced meals for early years settings, inspiring children to develop a lifelong love of food. As leaders in early years nutrition, they combine delicious menus with expert guidance and advocacy to help settings raise healthy, happy children. To find out more please visit - Nursery Kitchen | Delicious and nutritious nursery meals made easy

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Charlotte Stirling-Reed is a UK-based Registered Nutritionist specialising in baby and child nutrition. Founder of SR Nutrition and author of How to Wean Your Baby, she’s known for her evidence-based, practical advice that supports families during the early years. Charlotte has worked with the NHS, collaborated with public figures like Joe Wicks, and regularly contributes to media and conferences, helping shape healthier futures for children. To find out more take a look at Charlotte's webiste- Baby & Child Nutritionist | Charlotte Stirling-Reed

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Laura is a a Registered Nutritionist, food consultant and early years nutrition expert. Her mission is to help those responsible for the food children eat, be that parents, education providers or food brands, with the knowledge, inspiration and confidence to ensure every child gets the best nutritional start in life. To find out more visit her Laura's website - Laura Matthews Nutrition - Early years nutrition expert and food consultant

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Here you can find out all the details about TastEd- the sensory food education charity and the free resources they have on offer.

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Toddlers Meals and Snacks Webinar for Parents

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Toddlers Meals and Snacks Webinar for Parents

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This 45 minute webinar will support parents when planning meals and snacks for their little ones (aged 1 to 4 years) by Early Start Nutrition on: Wednesday 10th June 2026 at 7:30pm

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To help us keep this website secure, please wait while we verify you’re not a robot! It will only take a few seconds…

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This 45 minute webinar supports families with their baby's weaning journey (aged under 12 months) by Early Start Nutrition on: Thursday 14th May 2026 at 7:30pm

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We are delighted to offer the opportunity for 9 more settings to enrol in the TastEd Early Years Pilot. These sessions are free! Please sign up to one of the remaining sessions being held in May via the QR code or this link: TastEd Early Years Pilot - Memorandum of Understanding  – Fill in form

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QRCode for TastEd Early Years Pilot - Memorandum of Understanding  (1)

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Early Years Nutrition Guide for Essex-based Families 

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Early Years Nutrition Guide for Essex-based Families 

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Created by registered nutritionist, Charlotte StrilingReed, this guide offers practical tips for parents and families in supporting healthy eating. The guide covers weaning, allergens, cautious eaters, creating positive mealtime experiences, snack time and lunchbox support, recipe ideas, cooking on a budget and food activities, and is also full of helpful links and resources. Please share this resource with your parents, families and carers.

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You can find a training video on Education Essex Online discussing the importance of food education activities.

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Why choose Zebedees as your nursery food supplier?

We love what we do and we believe nutrition is at the heart of every child's development. After all, children can get up to 90% of their daily food intake from nursery food, which is why our nursery meal delivery service guarantees high-quality, healthy, and delicious food made from the freshest ingredients.

Here's what sets our nursery catering service apart:

Locally Sourced Ingredients. Working with trusted local suppliers, we favour British-grown products and ingredients.

Nutritionist-approved Nursery Meals. With years of experience working with children and local authorities as a nutritional consultant, Charlotte Stirling-Reed collaborates with our chefs to create nutritious and balanced meals that are tailored to young children.

Tailored Menus for Every Child's Need. We offermeal plans designed to meet a wide range of dietary requirements, food intolerances, and allergies. We are able to provide meals that do not contain any of the 14 main allergens, including gluten-free options, and ensure that they match or resemble the main menu wherever possible. It is our aim that no child feels 'different' or left out at meal times.

Never the same meal twice in 21 days. No more picky eaters! We rotate our menus every three weeks to ensure variety. Our menus are readily available for parents and nurseries to review online.

Real-time Trackable Delivery. Know exactly when meals will arrive with our reliable nursery food delivery service with real-time tracking.

Ensure Parents' Peace of Mind. Reassure parents that their children are well-cared for and are provided with healthy, balanced meals tailored to any dietary need.

Safety is a Top Priority. Our delivery drivers are DBS-checked, for peace of mind for nurseries and parents.

Healthy eating habits start young.

With Zebedees as your nursery food supplier, you can be confident that children are fueled by the right food. Only with the proper nutrients can they achieve great things-and we're here to support them every step of the way.

Try Our Food

How to get your nursery meal delivery sorted with Zebedees

At Zebedees, we are committed to making it easy for nurseries to provide healthy, delicious meals to children. Here's how:
1. Get a Taster Session: Obligation Free!
Thinking of using Zebedees as your trusted nursery meal supplier, but not ready to commit just yet? Try a first-hand experience of our nursery meals. Get our nursery meals delivered for a no-obligation taster session, so you can taste the quality of our dishes for yourself.
2. Easily Order Your Nursery Meal Plan
Once you've decided to proceed, our Client Services team will provide you with a unique log-in to our online ordering system, ZOO (Zebedees Online Ordering).

Orders must be submitted by 12 noon on a Thursday for the following week's delivery.
3. Pay for Your Nursery Meal Delivery
We aim to make the payment process as simple as possible. All payments for your nursery food orders are made via Direct Debit and are due within 7 days of the invoice date.
Book your nursery visit by simply filling out the form below. Available in London, Sussex, Kent, Brighton, Surrey, Hampshire, or Essex
Try Before You Buy

How Zebedees started: a legacy of quality nursery meals delivery

Professional chefs Philip Oates and Steve Parsons saw first-hand the problems local nursery schools were having with the provision of fresh, healthy food, using limited resources and kitchen facilities.

Over 25 years ago, they put their heads, know-how and spatulas together and came up with a reliable food delivery service that could meet both children and nurseries' needs: Zebedees nursery catering company was founded.

Zebedees today: leading the way in nursery catering

Today, Zebedees' dedicated team of 90 is proud to:

Deliver more than 10,000 hot nursery meals

Serve 5,000 afternoon teas every day

Supply over 370 nursery settings across London, Brighton, East and West Sussex, Kent, Surrey and Essex.

And those numbers keep on growing, which we're delighted about.

But, even as we grow, our values remain the same: helping children learn, play and grow healthy.
Make the right choice for your nursery. Choose Zebedees.

Frequently Asked Questions

Are you able to provide allergen free meals?

Yes, we can provide meals that do not contain any of the 14 main allergens, including egg-free, soya-free, dairy-free and gluten-free options. We can also provide substitute meals if a child is either intolerant or allergic to beans/pulses, tomatoes or citric acid

What cultural meals do you supply?

We offer vegetarian, vegan, pork free, beef free and Halal meals.

Where do you source your ingredients?

We use fresh, local ingredients and work with suppliers from Kent and Sussex wherever possible, to keep our food miles to a bare minimum.

How do you ensure the food stays hot?

Our food has a minimum core temperature of at least 90 degrees when it's put into Thermoport containers to be delivered. This means it arrives above 63 degrees and the children will always be able to enjoy a hot meal. Chilled food is delivered below 8°c.

Can we freeze/reheat the food?

All our meals are made to be eaten at lunchtime on the day of delivery, not to be cooled down for reheating or freezing for consumption at a later time or date.

Is the packaging recyclable?

All of our hot lunch equipment is reusable: we ask every nursery to clear out and rinse all the containers and put them back inside the boxes, ready for collection the next day.

Can we use you to cover staff absences?

Alongside permanent contracts, we can cover staff holidays or sickness with a temporary service.

How do we place an order?

Our Client Services team will email you a unique log-in to our online ordering system, ZOO (Zebedees Online Ordering). Orders must be submitted by 12 noon on a Thursday for the following week's delivery.

How do we pay for our order?

We ask for all payment by Direct Debit, within 7 days of the date on the invoice.

What we're up to

Receive our quarterly newsletter from Zebedees HQ in your inbox.

This will include a look behind-the-scenes, as well as useful nutrition tips, menus, interviews, mentions in the press and much more.

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The Process Behind Zebedees Nursery Meals: How It Works

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Get your Zebedees nursery meals in one click - delicious and healthy food for children prepared with high-quality and local ingredients delivered to your door.

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Nursery Kitchen Catering Partnership options

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Nursery Kitchen Catering Partnership options

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Partner with Nursery Kitchen for tasty and nutritious nursery meals

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Join Nursery Kitchen to provide children with healthy, freshly prepared meals, plus expert nutrition support and resources for your team.

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We'd love to know how often the toolkit is being used across settings in Essex. 

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We'd love to know how often the toolkit is being used across settings in Essex. 

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Have you used this toolkit in your setting when engaging with catering staff? 

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Toolkit for Engaging with & Influencing an External Caterer

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Toolkit for Engaging with & Influencing an External Caterer

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Here is a toolkit created by Laura Matthews (Registered Nutritionist). It is designed to support settings in communicating with, and influencing, external caterers when advocating for children’s health and wellbeing in relation to food and nutrition decisions.

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Toolkit for engaging an external caterer - Output #11 - Feb '26 (1)

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Department for Education - reducing H&S risks 

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Department for Education - reducing H&S risks 

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Department for Education - activity plan

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Department for Education - activity plan

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Department for Education - food activities

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Department for Education - food activities

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This article was written by the Department for Education (DfE) in consultation with a team of early years experts and senior health professionals, including Anaphylaxis UK.

Planning food activities with children

Cooking is a great experience for young children and helps to create a positive relationship with food.

Some children have limited opportunities to cook or learn about food at home. You can plan fun activities for children in your own setting and also suggest activities they can do with their parents and carers at home.

The benefits of food activities

There are lots of benefits of providing fun food activities for children:

confidence - children are more likely to try new foods and widen their diet

language - children learn new vocabulary and words from different languages

physical - cooking helps children practice physical skills, such as gross and fine motor skills. This helps muscle development and hand-eye coordination.

emotional - children can feel competent and proud of themselves when cooking

relationships - cooking activities can support team work and relationships between children and adults

mathematics - children will learn numbers through counting and measuring

science - children can observe how different ingredients mix together and the effects of heat and cooling

understanding the world around them - including where spices come from, how vegetables are grown and sustainability

diversity and culture - children can learn where foods come from and how different cultures use different cooking techniques

Quick and easy ideas

Making bread

Discovering exotic fruit

Exploring the local market

Growing herbs or vegetables indoors or outdoors

Plan ahead when you're doing food activities with children. Here's a template you can use to prepare your next activity.

Best practices to follow

You can minimise health and safety risks with careful planning and by following a risk assessment.

Remember to:

check there is enough space

make sure the floor is clean and dry

follow food safety and hygiene rules

make sure food and water are fresh

think about the allergies of everyone in the setting - not just those taking part

make sure the activity and tools are age-appropriate

Find out more about safety and hygiene for children's food from the NHS.

Read advice from the Food Standards Agency on safe food practices for nurseries and childminders.

Flour

A risk people may not be aware of is flour. Flour is a raw food, which means it hasn't been treated to kill any germs which might be in it like E. coli, which are found in the environment. You can get ill if you eat unbaked dough or batter made with flour containing germs. This includes dough or batter for:

cookies and biscuits

cakes

pie crusts

tortillas

pizza

pancakes

crafts made with raw flour, such as homemade play dough or holiday ornaments.

How to involve parents and carers

When parents and carers cook with their children it helps strengthen a child's relationship with food. Parents might find it challenging to cook with their children. This could be because of a shortage of time or money, a lack of cooking knowledge, a lack of space to cook or a fear of getting their home messy.

You can support parents by suggesting quick and budget-friendly recipes to cook with their children. You can also invite parents to take part in a cooking activity or 'cook-along' in your setting.

Key takeaways

Having fun with cooking can help children develop a healthy relationship with food. It is also a great learning experience.

Providing cooking activities to do at home can help children to bond with parents and carers.

If parents struggle to cook with their children, suggest quick recipes and activities to make it easier for them.

Further information

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This article was written by the Department for Education (DfE) in consultation with a team of early years experts and senior health professionals, including Anaphylaxis UK. Cooking is a great experience for young children and helps to create a positive relationship with food. Some children have limited opportunities to cook or learn about food at home.

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Department for Education - chocolate and beetroot brownie

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Department for Education - chocolate and beetroot brownie

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Department for Education - zero waste bubble and squeak

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Department for Education - zero waste bubble and squeak

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Department for Education - Five bean chilli and homemade nachos

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Department for Education - Five bean chilli and homemade nachos

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Department for Education - chicken and vegetable pasta salad

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Department for Education - chicken and vegetable pasta salad

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Department for Education - homemade chicken burgers 

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Department for Education - homemade chicken burgers 

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Department for Education - cornflake chicken, sweet potato wedges and sweetcorn

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Department for Education - cornflake chicken, sweet potato wedges and sweetcorn

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Department for Education - Jerk chicken and slaw wraps

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Department for Education - Jerk chicken and slaw wraps

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Department for Education - Aubergine and Tomato Curry 

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Department for Education - Aubergine and Tomato Curry 

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Department for Education - cost effective healthy food 

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Department for Education - cost effective healthy food 

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Help for early years providers : Cost-effective healthy food

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Use these recipes and top tips to make it cheaper and easier to serve healthy food.

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Department for Education - substitutions for common allergens 

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Department for Education - substitutions for common allergens 

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Department for Education - list of common allergens 

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Department for Education - list of common allergens 

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Department for Education - food allergies and intolerances 

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Department for Education - food allergies and intolerances 

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Help for early years providers : Food allergies and intolerances

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Department for Education - portion sizes

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Department for Education - portion sizes

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Department for Education -  nutrition for 1-5 years

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Department for Education -  nutrition for 1-5 years

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Food Standards Agency - choking hazards 

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Food Standards Agency - choking hazards 

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Department for Education - how to prepare and cut food safely

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Department for Education - how to prepare and cut food safely

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How to prepare and cut food safely for babies

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Department for Education - solid food roadmap 

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Department for Education - solid food roadmap 

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Department for Education - birth to 1 year guidance

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Department for Education - birth to 1 year guidance

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Help for early years providers : Birth to 1 year guidance

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The NHS provides information on the benefits of breastfeeding and on safe storage of expressed breast milk.

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Best Practice Nutrition Plan- template and implementation guide

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Best Practice Nutrition Plan- template and implementation guide

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Designed by Laura Matthews (Registered Nutritionist). This is a template to help settings to: Clearly show how they implement the DfE Early Years Nutrition Guidance, evidence good practice for inspection and quality assurance and plan, review and strengthen food and mealtime practice over time. This document will allow you to demonstrate how your setting meets the DfE Early Years Nutrition Guidance (2025) and plan ahead.

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Final Output 7 Best Practice Nutrition Template - FINAL

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Have you used the Food Safety Support for EY resource in your setting?

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Food Safety Support resource designed by Laura Matthews Registered Nutritionist providing practical guidance for keeping children safe in early years settings

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Essex County Council #10 - Support for food safety - FINAL

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This document collates many health promotion resources in one place that you may find useful to help plan displays, open days etc. This was created by the wonderful Laura Matthews (Registered Nutritionist).

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health promotion resources FINAL - 26th Jan 2026

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It's Fibre February!
In the UK, no age group is currently consuming the recommended amount of dietary fibre, and in the vast majority of each age group, intakes are well below daily recommendations. When you focus on school pupils, only 14% of 4-10 year olds and 4% of 11-18 year olds are eating the recommended amount of fibre - so there's definitely room for improvement.

Age Fibre per day (g)

2-3 years

15g

4-10 years

20g

11-18 years

25g

19+ years

30g

But why fibre?
Fibre is important for keeping the digestive system healthy, plus there's an association between increased dietary fibre intake and a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease, colorectal cancer and type 2 diabetes. Certain types of fibre can also provide additional, specific benefits, such as acting as a food source for 'good' bacteria. High-fibre foods provide a low amount of energy (calories) per gram, and they may be able to keep people feeling fuller for longer, reducing overall energy (calorie) intake.
Where's the fibre?
Fibre is found in a range of foods, including fruit, vegetables, pulses (beans, lentils and peas), nuts and seeds, starchy food (such as potatoes) and grains. The Eatwell Guide recommends the consumption of potatoes, bread, rice, pasta and other starchy carbohydrates, which should be the base of each meal. It's also important to go for wholegrain or higher fibre versions of these foods as they provide more fibre than their counterparts, e.g. wholemeal v white.

In the UK, foods made from grains, such as bread and breakfast cereals, contribute the highest fibre intake (between 38-44%, depending on age), followed by vegetables and potatoes (21-32%). Fruit contributes between 6-16%.
What can be done?
We all need to increase the amount of fibre in our diet, and follow the recommendations given in the Eatwell Guide. As food educators, it's our job to encourage this uptake by ensuring lessons focus on fibre, so that pupils understand the 'why', and are given opportunities to 'apply' their knowledge in practical, realistic ways, such as reviewing menus, modifying recipes and cooking higher fibre dishes.

Get involved!
Below are a number of ways in which you and your pupils can focus on fibre this February. There are a range of resources to support learning, as well as as a fibre challenge for older primary and secondary aged pupils.

Get started by taking a look at our Fibre February teachers' guide.
Try these fun fibre activities! Take on the Fibre February challenge!
Most people in the UK are not having enough fibre in their diets. By making small changes to a recipe, such as swapping from white to wholemeal flour, the amount of fibre provided can be easily increased.

Set older primary and secondary aged pupils the following challenge...
"Increase the fibre provided by a recipe, meal or menu."
Think about ingredients that can be added or swapped to increase fibre, such as using wholemeal flour, seeds, fruit, vegetables, beans, peas and lentils.

Show your fibre creation by:

writing a recipe;

cooking and photographing the dish;

undertaking nutritional analysis (using our free tool, Explore Food) to compare the fibre content before and after;

producing an animation (or presentation);

creating a poster to show the fibre swaps/additions that you have made;

devising and recording an advert for your dish.

Remember to show how the fibre has been increased!

You can download a copy of the Fibre challenge here.

Why not share the creativity of your pupils with us on X (Twitter)? @Foodafactoflife #FibreFebruary
Top tips for increasing fibre intake

Base meals around starchy carbohydrates such as bread, pasta, potatoes and other grains, such as quinoa or couscous.

Use wholemeal flour instead of white in recipes. Wholemeal flour provides more fibre than white flour, although white flour does still provide some fibre.

Swap refined or 'white' carbohydrate sources (e.g. bread, cereals, pasta) for wholegrain varieties.

Consume a variety of fruit and vegetables and aim for at least 5 A DAY.

Try to include more pulses, nuts and seeds in dishes by adding to stews, curries and salads.

Start your day with a higher fibre breakfast, including foods such as wholegrain cereals topped with dried or fresh fruit, wholemeal bread or whole fresh fruit.

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Fibre February 2024 - Food A Fact Of Life

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It's Fibre February! In the UK, no age group is currently consuming the recommended amount of dietary fibre, and in the vast majority of each age group, intakes are well below daily recommendations. When you focus on school pupils, only 14% of 4-10 year olds and 4% of 11-18 year olds are eating the recommended amount of fibre - so there's definitely room for improvement.

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Please leave feedback on the Menu Planning & Recipe Ideas toolkit

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Please leave feedback on the Menu Planning & Recipe Ideas toolkit

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Have you been able to use the menu planning and recipe ideas toolkit in your setting?

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Laura Matthews, Registered Nutritionist, has designed a Menu Planning & Recipe Ideas. This resource provides practical support for planning menus, understanding nutrition requirements, managing portion sizes, and supporting parents and carers with packed lunches.

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LM Menu Planning & recipe ideas final 2026

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Have you used the Food & Nutrition Activities toolkit in your setting?

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This template was created by Registered Nutritionist Laura Matthews to help settings plan food activities that offer opportunities for children to learn about healthy eating and the journey of food from farm to plate.

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Provided by Community Dental Services

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Healthy eating on a budget - Nursery Kitchen 

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Healthy eating on a budget - Nursery Kitchen 

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Healthy eating on a budget | Nursery Kitchen

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Healthy eating on a budget made simple, with sustainable, practical tips that help keep children well nourished in settings and at home.

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- What's the difference between immediate and delayed food allergies? 

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- What's the difference between immediate and delayed food allergies? 

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What’s the difference between immediate and delayed food allergies

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Nursery Kitchen- What to do if you suspect your child has reacted to a food

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Nursery Kitchen- What to do if you suspect your child has reacted to a food

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What to do if you suspect your child has reacted to a food

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- What is a Food Intolerance? 

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- What is a Food Intolerance? 

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet - What is a food allergy? 

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet - What is a food allergy? 

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- What is a contact reaction?

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- What is a contact reaction?

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- Allergy Testing

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- Allergy Testing

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- Allergy Q+A for parents/carers

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet- Allergy Q+A for parents/carers

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet - 10 things you need to know about food allergies & intolerances

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Nursery Kitchen Factsheet - 10 things you need to know about food allergies & intolerances

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EYS Toolkit - resources for EYS and Families

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EYS Toolkit - resources for EYS and Families

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EY Nutrition Toolkit - Resources for EYS and families

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Working with Parents on Nutrition Webinar Opportunity

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Working with Parents on Nutrition Webinar Opportunity

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Charlotte Stirling Reed (Registered Nutritionist) and Zebedees are running a CPD-accredited webinar covering "Working with Parents on Nutrition" and offers support for nursery and early years staff navigating feeding little ones and the relationship between them and parents. If you would like to join and continue building strong parent partnerships that support children’s long‑term wellbeing, you can reserve your place now using the link attached.

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Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams

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Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams

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Vegan infants

and under-5s

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Mealtime Environments and Behaviours Resource

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Mealtime Environments and Behaviours Resource

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Registered Nutritionist Laura Matthews has developed a resource to help settings prepare for positive mealtime environments. It includes guidance on behaviours to model and those to be aware of. Please review and adapt the document so it reflects the needs of your setting.

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Want to learn about safer eating in early years? Our course covers everything you need to know about the requirements and why they are important.

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Paediatric First Aid Awareness Course| flick Learning

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This course is for anyone who comes into contact with children, understand what paediatric first aid is and techniques that can help in an emergency.

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New Requirements for Safe Eating in Early Years | flick

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On 1st September 2025, significant updates to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) come into force. Whilst the changes span across a range of areas within the EYFS, one of the most significant is the introduction of safe eating requirements for all early years settings.

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USEFUL RESOURCES

DfE Guidance – Planning food activities with children

NHS – healthy recipes

Food a fact of life - recipes

Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) - Growing vegetables in containers

Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) – Growing herbs in containers

See & Eat – Fruit and vegetable activities and resources

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The Food and Nutrition Policy template has been used in my setting?

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Here is the Implementation Guide for the Food and Nutrition Policy created by Laura Matthews Nutrition to help with editing the Food and Nutrition Policy template available in this section.

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This is an editable policy template made by Laura Matthews Nutrition developed with all settings in mind. Please save a copy and edit/tailor the document accordingly.

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How to Effectively Engage and Support Parents and/or Carers.

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How to Effectively Engage and Support Parents and/or Carers.

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Designed by Laura Matthews- Registered Nutritionist providing support on EYFS Nutrition Guidance (DfE,2025) parent/carer engagement requirements. Please edit the document so that it is tailored to your setting.

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Please let us know if you have used this Guide in your setting and shared with parents

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Have you used Laura Matthews' Allergen Management Guide in your setting?

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Allergen Management Guide for EY Settings

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Allergen Management Guide for EY Settings

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This is an Allergen Management Guide created by Laura Matthews, Registered Nutritionist, to help settings implement the allergen management requirements from the EYFS Nutrition Guidance (DfE,2025).

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Allergen Management Guide - Output #2 - 20th Nov '25

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Additional resources once signed up to the Daily Mile

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The Daily Mile is a simple and effective way for schools to improve the physical, social, emotional and mental wellbeing of children. See how at Active Essex.

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To sign up and access resources

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© 2025 The Daily Mile. Website published by The Daily Mile Foundation. 'The Daily Mile' name and logo are trademarks of The Daily Mile Foundation, Hawkslease, Chapel Lane, Lyndhurst SO43 7FG (Registered Charity Number 1166911). All rights reserved.

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Parent Guide: EYFS Nutrition Guidance (DfE, 2025)

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Parent Guide: EYFS Nutrition Guidance (DfE, 2025)

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This pamphlet, created by Registered Nutritionist Charlotte Stirling-Reed, breaks down the key points of the new EYFS Nutrition Guidance (DfE, 2025) and offers practical tips for supporting healthy eating in your setting. Please share this resource with parents and carers.

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Leaflet for parents

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Example packed lunch standards - Luton

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Example menu standards from Luton

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Make, much and More: Build a Brilliant Snack!

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Make, much and More: Build a Brilliant Snack!

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This course is designed to help you deliver the nutrition education element of the Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme to primary school aged children.

Many people find it difficult to deliver this part of the HAF programme, perhaps because they are unsure about what they should be teaching children about food, or which types of activities are appropriate or safe, and many don't have kitchens or kitchen equipment.

This course will give you the knowledge, skills and confidence to safely run a practical food activity with children in your setting, by:

We have put together a course booklet which is intended to be your companion as you complete the Build a brilliant snack bite sized training course.

The booklet tracks the key content in the course and provides a place for you to make notes. It is designed to be a helpful reminder of what has been covered by the course, to help you with planning and running your practical food activity with children.

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Make, munch and more: Build a brilliant snack! A bite sized online training course for HAF providers by British Nutrition Foundation on cademy.io

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A short course providing training around how to safely run a practical food activity with children in holiday clubs.

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Explore what our county has to offer and see what incredible opportunities are available near you for early years

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The early years are a crucial time for children's development. One in five children are already overweight or obese before they start school and only one in ten children aged two to four meets the UK Chief Medical Officers' physical activity guidelines for this age group. This section outlines the ways in which Active Essex provides opportunities for parents and children to achieve a more active daily life.

In the UK, 91% of children under the age of 4 are still not reaching the recommended levels of physical activity (PA), this will impact on all areas of development and increases the risk of mental and physical health concerns in later life. The recommended amount of daily physical activity for a child aged under 5 is 180 minutes (3 hours) incorporating 60 minutes for MVPA (moderate to vigorous physical activity).

Useful Links

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One in five children are overweight before they start school. Active Essex helps children to achieve a more active daily life in those crucial early years.

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Eating well for 1-4 year olds - Practical Guide 

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Eating well for 1-4 year olds - Practical Guide 

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 EYFS nutrition guidance, and explore what it means for early years settings  - podcast 

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 EYFS nutrition guidance, and explore what it means for early years settings  - podcast 

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This is Early Years is a monthly podcast from Nursery World which takes a lively look at all things early years education related.

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Nutritious mealtimes for under 5's - podcast 

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Nutritious mealtimes for under 5's - podcast 

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This article and podcast episode take a close look at some of the key questions around nutrition for under 5’s; from what “free sugars” really are and why young children don’t need much sugar, to how we can approach weaning confidently, prepare finger foods safely, and understand portion sizes in the early years.

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Fussy Eating Explained: Tips for Navigating Fussy Eating

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Fussy Eating Explained: Tips for Navigating Fussy Eating

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Fussy Eating Explained: Tips for Navigating Fussy Eating - Guest Blog post by Katia Balducci

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Fussy Eating Explained: Tips for Navigating Fussy Eating

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How to Feed is all about feeding KIDS—whether they’re babies, toddlers, or bigger kids. Charlotte will talk through different areas of feeding kids to give you advice, share tips, and most importantly, boost your confidence in feeding your little ones.

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Episode 2
In this episode it's just Charlotte. N o guests , just Charlotte diving into a specific feeding topic and sharing her top tips. Whether it's weaning advice, dealing with fussy eaters, or answering the common questions Charlotte hears from parents every day, to give you practical advice that you can take away and use right away.

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Charlotte's BRAND NEW podcast is now available! - SR Nutrition

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Charlotte's BRAND NEW podcast is now available! Charlotte Stirling Reed of SR Nutrition has a podcast on feeding your children

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Including games and challenges to make snack time fun and recipes to get children excited about healthy eating and cooking