Rebecca Vandermoer

So Right Bite was a great option for our service because it really made us break down our recipes in our menu, looking for the best for the children. This could be the only opportunity those children get to have a healthy meal in the day, so we think that is very important and we really value that.

We also, the school thinks it's very important. So the school has worked with us very closely. And if your school isn't on board, it does make it a bit more tricky, but you really should go to them and promote that this is the best practice for the children.

If you want to be a successful OSHC the school should be doing it the same and you should be working together.

Ashleigh Gibson:

Right Bite’s been really great for our school because we've been able to provide healthy food to students with a very simplistic menu. We try to utilise things over in different dishes and the outcomes have been that the students are engaged with what we eat and they're excited about the products that   we provide to them.

Rebecca Vandermoer

OSHC services should implement Right Bite because it's the best for the children. If you want to be a high-quality service, this is the leading thing to do.

Ashleigh Gibson:

To implement the Right Bite standards in school, in your school, you might want to ask your Governing Council for support. Certainly, I found that very supportive and your principal should be on board because it's a strategy that's implemented by the Department for Education to help those children and   provide the best canteen service for the children in this school.

Rebecca Vandermoer

It's not mandatory, but it's recommended, highly recommended to do. Your school should be on board with it as well. If you want to be exceeding, this is that next level going above and beyond for your children.

Ashleigh Gibson:

We're also responsible for role modelling healthy eating to children. So if we are promoting healthy food, and we're encouraging the eating of healthy food and supplying healthy food to those children, we’re making them think that that's how their life should be or and that that keeps them healthy and   focused during the day,

Rebecca Vandermoer

As an OSHC service you have the perfect opportunity for role modelling. The staff are eating around the children we’re eating with the children, the children are eating the healthy food that we're giving to them. These children might not be getting healthy food from anywhere else, and we can provide   them with that opportunity.

These healthy foods are what help the children grow and develop. They also give them a full belly, which makes them happy. They are then interactive and engaged in your service at all times.

Ashleigh Gibson:

Healthy food is important because it promotes better learning, focus and growth and development to reach full potential. We have to remember as well that our canteen might be the only place where a child gets healthy food in the day. You know, not everybody's at the same level in the community.

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Ashleigh Gibson:

The positive outcomes of Right Bite for us have been a small, workable menu that reduces waste, which reduces cost but still provides a good service to children.

In our school, our menu is well received in the community. The students really love it, and parents are often very excited for their children to start at school.

I would definitely go to the Healthy Food Environments Hub there are lots of tips and recipes and inspiration on there to get you started.

Rebecca Vandermoer

So a positive outcome at our service would be really building that positive relationship between the children and the food and even the educators.

As a mum myself, going through the food checker, I was thinking, I'm giving my children a healthy option when I do a veggie and cheese platter at home. But looking at the different cheeses and the different crackers that I'm using, that's really helped me as a parent. And other parents have been asking   for recipes that the children are really enjoying with this new change to the menu.

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Ashleigh Gibson:

So in the new Right Bite standards, there's a clearer split of the foods into a 60/40 breakup of your menu into green and amber foods, which has allowed more flexibility and, I think, more clarity in the foods that you can provide to the students.

Rebecca Vandermoer

So what's changed with the red categories is there's now a red category 1 and a red category 2. So red category 1 can be done once or twice per term and then red category 2 shouldn't be done at all.

Ashleigh Gibson:

So the red category has been divided into two. So the category 1 items that can be included once or twice per term and category 2 items that really should never be on the canteen menu.

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Rebecca Vandermoer

So there's also been an introduction of three non-food related standards, and these are with the food safety. And so each service will need to have a food safety supervisor.

We also get all our OSHC staff to do a food online training. We then also have single use plastics in the food wastage that we really focus on with the sustainability and the NQF all comes in together.

So there's also the third one would be no marketing with red 1 and red 2 food items at the service.

Ashleigh Gibson:

There's been the introduction of three new non-food related standards. The first is to do with food hygiene and handling. The second is to do with packaging of items and disposal of packaging and food waste. And the third is to do with marketing and promotional materials and really taking those out   of the space that the students might be in.

Rebecca Vandermoer

So another great place to go is the Healthy Food Environments Hub. This gives you lots of different options. It gives you ideas and ways to move forward and how to implement it in your service.

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