A primary school kitchen could be dishing up delicious dinners for pupils around the area if it gets the go ahead to become a catering “hub”.
From September all primary schools in England will be obliged to provide free school dinners to children in key stage one.
But some schools will struggle to meet the demand as their kitchen facilities are not up to the job or non existent.
A planning application has been submitted by Southview Primary School in Crowland to help fill the gap by preparing fresh food for other schools in the area from the kitchen at its new site.
The school is moving from its current home in Reform Street to the site formerly occupied by the University Academy Holbeach’s Crowland campus from September.
The move will see the school grow from its current 322 pupil capacity to 420, helping to meet the growing need for primary places within the area.
It would include additional classrooms and, according to the county council, lead to “enhanced teaching provision and career opportunities for staff to benefit the learning experience of the children”.
The planning application to change the use of the school’s kitchen to a catering facility says it is necessary as not all schools have “on site” facilities to prepare hot meals, and it is not possible to install or reinstate them in all schools.
It says: “Therefore ‘hubs’ have had to be established to ensure the option of a freshly cooked nutritious hot meal is made available to as many school children as possible within the county.
“The equipment which has been installed is capable of preparing up to 500 meals per day.
“However during some peak periods, such as before the Christmas break, the uptake may be greater.”
If granted the new catering hub would operate from 6.30am until around 4.30pm, although at peak times this could extend to 6am to 6pm.
It would be manned by four full time and six part time staff.
Prepared meals will then be loaded onto trolleys and shipped out on a fleet of five delivery vans, leaving the school between 10.30am and 11.30am and returning between 1pm and 3pm.
Around two or three, but possibly up to six, deliveries of food supplies will also be made to the site each day.
The application says: “It is considered that the method of cooking and the type of meals prepared would not result in the malodour normally associated with the cooking styles and food prepared in restaurants or takeaways such as Chinese, Indian or fish and chips or continuous operations such as burger bars.
“It is the intention of the applicant that the proposal would not result in significant harm to the residential amenity of the surrounding area.
“The impacts would also be limited as the kitchen would be open during the day and only during term time.”
A decision on the application was due to made by South Holland District Council yesterday.
