Welcome to Ysgol Bryn Teg in Llanelli, the place the employees make it their precedence to offer pupils with wholesome meals each day
Inside Ysgol Bryn Teg in Llanelli there’s a mixed sense of unhappiness and pleasure within the air. It’s a sense that all of us keep in mind from our major faculty days – the tip of time period, the place playtimes are prolonged and blockbuster movies are analysed greater than maths books.
For the youngsters in Yr 6, it’s per week they’ll always remember. This has been their house from house for the previous seven years; it has helped make them who they’re as they get able to embark on the following chapter of their younger lives – huge faculty.
“We’ve received three days left however a kind of is a visit so actually we’ve solely received two days left!” one of many pupils defined in the course of the closing week of the summer time time period. Keep knowledgeable on Carms information by signing as much as our publication right here.
One of many foremost ways in which major colleges have such an enormous affect on younger youngsters is said to well being and wellbeing. Certainly, at Ysgol Bryn Teg, the college’s core values are ‘Respect, Wellbeing, and Independence’, whereas the motto right here is ‘attain for the celebrities’.
But the cruel realities of contemporary day life in 2025 imply that generally reaching for the celebrities is tougher than it sounds. For some mother and father, with the ability to present a wholesome and nutritious breakfast for his or her youngsters is a problem, be it for monetary or purely sensible causes. But for pupils, it’s most likely an important a part of their day.
Ysgol Bryn Teg is one in every of a whole bunch of faculties to have acquired a grant from grocery store large Tesco to assist them present their pupils with wholesome meals at totally different instances of the day. The grocery store’s Stronger Begins programme supplies greater than £8m a yr of monetary assist to group teams and colleges. You’ll be able to learn extra about that and the way it may assist your native faculty or group group right here.
In accordance with Tesco, virtually 80% of faculties within the UK are struggling to offer meals for pupils attributable to restricted budgets. In Wales, greater than 50 million free faculty meals have been served in major colleges since 2022.
Whereas that could be a large assist to varsities and fogeys alike, the fact of poverty confronted by some nonetheless throws up totally different challenges in relation to feeding pupils and serving to them to reside wholesome lives.
At Ysgol Bryn Teg, in addition to the meals served at lunchtime, employees additionally run a breakfast membership from 8.15am which gives youngsters toast, fruit and yoghurt. They’ll even have fruit throughout a mid-morning break, and pupils within the Camau Bach class after lunch can get pleasure from fruit, milk, and possibly the odd cookie for an end-of-term deal with.
“We’re a wholesome faculty and we delight ourselves on giving youngsters the very best begin doable,” says faculty headteacher Geraint Jones. “And free fruit for learners helps assist our potential to offer that. Our college enterprise supervisor, Janine West, heard about the potential of getting a grant from Tesco’s Stronger Begins programme and it went from there.
“It’s helped us to have the ability to supply one thing that’s important. With tightening budgets we’ve needed to in the reduction of during the last three or 4 years attributable to prices. We now have misplaced some employees and needed to evaluate our spending. We now have needed to do issues otherwise and it’s been good to obtain that assist from Tesco.
“We need to present a protected haven for our kids and we have to present them with the fundamentals, and wholesome meals is part of that.”
The college’s head boy James is in little doubt in regards to the significance of being supplied with free wholesome snacks all through the college day. “It’s positively good to know that if you come to high school you’ll be able to have one thing to eat,” he mentioned.
“Generally possibly you don’t have time for breakfast otherwise you don’t have sufficient for breakfast, so it’s good to have the ability to have one thing in class so that you simply’re not distracted by being hungry. It’s very, excellent and we’re all very grateful.”
Deputy head boy Samuel agrees. “Having wholesome meals helps you focus in your schoolwork and means you’ll be able to maintain working arduous in class.” Head woman Tia additionally thinks wholesome meals helps her get essentially the most out of her day in class. “You carry out higher in class if you happen to’re not hungry,” she mentioned, whereas deputy head woman Sophie added “it positively helps you thru the day”.
Out of greater than 260 pupils at Ysgol Bryn Teg, round 50 repeatedly get pleasure from free breakfasts. “Some pupils have to be dropped off early due to their mother and father’ work commitments, whereas others possibly must have the free breakfast for monetary causes,” mentioned Mr Jones.
The college’s efforts haven’t gone unnoticed, not solely by pupils and fogeys however additional afield. Final yr the college achieved the Nationwide High quality Award throughout the Wholesome Colleges Scheme, an initiative which goals to enhance the well being and well-being of pupils by varied tasks. The college’s achievement highlights its dedication to making a wholesome and supportive studying atmosphere.
“There are all the time challenges, particularly since Covid,” mentioned Mr Jones. “We now have relied closely on individuals’s assist, be it donations from governors or initiatives like Tesco’s Stronger Begins.
“That assist has supported what we provide to pupils right here and allowed us to to proceed providing it for the long-term – we’ve been doing it for about 4 years now.”
In a classroom down the corridor because the summer time time period involves an finish, younger pupils within the ‘Camau Bach’ class be taught whereas consuming free fruit and consuming free milk.
It’s a room filled with smiles and pleasure, adorned with photos on the partitions and blue Tesco counters on the desk. One pupil tells me he’s by no means tried a banana in his life. I inform him to strive one as it should assist make him robust. He does so and proceeds to drop to the ground to finish 10 press-ups. “You’re proper!” he says, laughing as he goes again to his seat.
For these youngsters, it’s the tip of one other time period and the beginning of the summer time holidays; for these in Yr 6 it’s the tip of college as they understand it and the beginning of an entire new chapter of their lives.
“It’s thrilling nevertheless it’s additionally unhappy as a result of we received’t be coming to high school right here anymore,” says deputy head boy Samuel.
Whereas Samuel and his pals received’t be coming again to Ysgol Bryn Teg, they are often protected within the data that the college has given them the absolute best begin to a contented and wholesome life.
