In 2007 we were awarded Healthy School status and we have renewed our status in 2010 after achieving all required criteria. 

We provide high-quality physical education and promote physical activities as part of a lifelong healthy lifestyle. Through the curriculum we ensure pupils have a full understanding of issues and behaviours which impact upon lifelong health. We provide two weekly exciting PE lessons involving some use of specialist PE teachers, and a number of after school sports clubs. As part of PE we provide cycling training following the bikeability national standards. To read more, click here. The emotional health and well being of all members of our community is highly valued as we know that happier people make better learners.

We strive to encourage healthy eating and drinking in our school through assemblies, displays and in lessons as it is now part of the day-to-day life of Edmund Waller starting from Breakfast club until the end of the day. The children are making healthier choices both in choosing items for school dinners and in the packed lunches brought from home.

We were privileged enough to be involved in decided what catering company will have the future contract with Lewisham. The pupils work closely with the catering staff at Edmund Waller. Some of the partnership work between the school and the catering company has been:

• receiving feedback from the pupils as they write their comments in the comments book. The menu has been slightly tailored to the school if there are certain foods that are not eaten. The pupils were introduced to plates and bowls instead of trays.
• making the whole lunch time experience more enjoyable and worthwhile. A survey was conducted and many changes have taken place one being pupil trays being replaced by plates and bowls.
• placing recycling containers and a compost container near the waste bin. The aim was to reduce the amount of waste being produced. In conjunction with this, the children were asked to try and eat all of the food on their plates.
• children designing pizzas with different toppings and the catering staff producing the pizzas. This made the children feel they had a part to play in what they would eat at lunch times.
• working with  specific children and their families on what they can eat because of the allergies.
• using the foods grown in the school vegetable patches. Some of the dishes created have been rhubarb crumble, potato hot pot using the salad in the salad bar.

Welcome to our new addtion to the Edmund Waller family - CHICKENS.

  Chickens.

 Chickens at Waller.

To read our Food Policy, click here.

To read our Smoke Free Policy, click here.

Year 6 restuarant project where they cook their own food.

Food provided is freshly cooked, using a range of ingredients with an emphasis on fresh fruit and vegetables. The number of school dinners has increased from approximately 150 pupils to approximately 300 pupils. This is due to the improvements we have made to the lunch time experience. It has been successful as we wanted to makes sure we involved the pupils in our decisions.

The Waller Warriors Green Team introduced recycling bins and compost bins to lunch times. Fruit, vegetables and certain plastics are recycled. This in turn reduces the amount of waste from four bags a day to two bags a day.

We have also ensured that every child has access to water all day with water fountains in every classroom and off of the playgrounds.

Healthy Eating certificates are awarded to the pupils who choose a healthy meal (including food from the salad bar), who eat all the food on their plate, who choose to try new foods and who drink plenty of water. This also includes the pupils who bring in a healthy packed lunch. We discuss the importance of drinking and eating all the food on the plate as this will give pupils energy to learn for the rest of the day. The certificates are publically awarded to the pupils in assembly encouraging others to follow suit.

As well as eating fruit and vegetables at lunch times, pupils in Nursery to Year 2 are given either fruit of vegetable daily. Children in Key Stage 2 are encouraged to bring in fruit or vegetables to eat at play time.

In the Early Years Foundation Stage there are guinea pigs. They pupils have the opportunity to feed them, provide water for them from the rain butt and care for them. They were the first animals introduced to the Edmund Waller family. Now, we are introducing five new chickens to the Edmund Waller family as part of caring for other living things and knowing where our food comes from. The children will be selling the fresh eggs to families and using the eggs in recipes and their science lessons. To watch how our chicken adventure unfolds, watch this space...

The children in the Early Years Foundation Stage learn and witness at first hand the process a chick goes through before it hatches. Fertilised eggs are delivered to the classes from a farm and placed into an incubator. The incubators keep the fertilised eggs warm and gently rotate them before they hatch.
When the chicks hatch the children hold them, feed them, provide water and watch their every movement. They discuss their features, how soft they feel, what they will grow into and read information books and stories about chickens. This is all linked to learning about living things and where our food comes from.
After a period of time the chicks are handed back to the farm to live a happy life!