Kevin McKay took over as chairman of the Local Authority Caterers Association (LACA) last week and faces the most challenging times ever to confront the sector. He spoke to Emily Manson about his plans.
How does it feel to be elected chairman of LACA?
It's an honour to be elected by your peer group at a time when there's so much interest and national concern about school food.
Do you expect to be as busy as Neil Porter was last year?
No! I think the hype has been there and headlined. I see the next year as a time of consolidation and implementation. It's an important opportunity to encourage best practice across the industry.
Caterer What do you think will be the key issues of your chairmanship?
My real concern is the reduction in numbers being fed daily in schools. It's important catering staff are involved in delivering the services and become an integral part of school life rather than merely a contractor. I want to help create a stronger industry of committed and dedicated professionals providing a better service.
How will you improve LACA's influence?
I want to strengthen our voice as the leading consultative body on schools with the government, suppliers, manufacturers and providers. We want representation on the School Food Trust and the School Meals Review Panel for nutritional standards.
What's the key to improving school meals?
It's ownership, belief in the product and ensuring that good service is promoted.
Is the Government's promise of £220m for school meals enough, and how should it be deployed?
Time will tell, but at some point local authorities will have to choose where their spending priorities are. Individual authorities must examine food costs first, but setting a minimum of 50p is not a means of guaranteeing quality. Other areas which need funding are staff training, kitchen development, equipment and promotion of the service.
What can be done with schools failing to improve?
The introduction of Ofsted will help to improve standards and we're looking forward to seeing what the national nutritional standards will look like.
What are the biggest obstacles for council caterers and how can they best be tackled?
Overcoming apathy among parents, pupils, providers and to a lesser extent, head teachers. We need to ensure that improvement strategies developed by authorities have full support so there is a common purpose.