Nursery World - Free school fruit is a capital idea

Just under 250,000 London schoolchildren aged four to six are now receiving a free piece of fruit each day under a 42m scheme backed by Lottery cash through the New Opportunities Fund (NOF). Health experts believe children in London currently eat only half the recommended daily amounts of fruit and vegetables and that the School Fruit Pilot Programme will promote healthy living and help to prevent cancer, heart disease and strokes occurring in later life. A total of 244,969 pupils in 1,354 schools are now being offered the free fruit, with more to benefit from the scheme in the coming weeks.

Health experts believe children in London currently eat only half the recommended daily amounts of fruit and vegetables and that the School Fruit Pilot Programme will promote healthy living and help to prevent cancer, heart disease and strokes occurring in later life. A total of 244,969 pupils in 1,354 schools are now being offered the free fruit, with more to benefit from the scheme in the coming weeks.

Ceri Jones, NOF London regional officer, said school participation was running 'at an excellent 80 per cent'. She added, 'This is a great example of how Lottery money can be targeted to help improve quality of life and show how we can effectively link up education and health services to benefit local people.'

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