Healthy Snacks at Kids Clubs
Introduction
1. This project, developed in 1999, is a food initiative delivered through the Kids Club Network, which comprises 9 clubs based at various locations throughout East Ayrshire. It is targeted at primary school aged children and includes:
- Provision of healthy snacks for children attending the Kids Clubs on a rotational basis.
- Provision of healthy eating related resources for each Kids Club e.g. replica foods, ‘balance of good health’ play-mat and food photograph cards.
- Training for Kids Clubs staff on food preparation and food hygiene and also ideas on how to use the resources effectively within the Kids Club setting.
- Ongoing monitoring and evaluation of the impact of the initiative.
Objectives and Purpose of Project
3. What is the general aim of the project?
To raise awareness of the issues surrounding food and health and to promote healthy eating, whist addressing issues of food poverty.
4. What are the key objectives / expected outcomes the project is intended to achieve?
- To encourage children to try a variety of different foods through the provision of free healthy snacks within East Ayrshire Kids Club Network.
- To encourage children to participate in a variety of games and activities which promote healthy eating.
- To develop children’s knowledge, understanding and awareness of the importance of a balanced diet and understand why this is important for a healthy lifestyle.
- To provide a comprehensive programme of training and support for Kids Club staff to allow them to implement the initiative effectively.
The project is currently managed by East Ayrshire’s Recreation Partnership Project which was set up to provide a dynamic and innovative approach towards engaging primary school aged children in health-related activities both within the school setting and in the community. In relation to this particular initiative, the Recreation Partnership Project works closely in partnership with Community Dieticians from NHS Ayrshire & Arran.
Partners
6. What is the status of your organisation?
Local Authority – East Ayrshire Council
7. List any other organisations that are involved in the project and indicate the nature of their input.
- The Recreation Partnership Project currently has lead responsibility for the implementation of this initiative.
- The Recreation Partnership Project is based within East Ayrshire Council’s Leisure Development Section.
- Funding for the Recreation Partnership Project comes from 3 main sources: East Ayrshire Council, the Community Regeneration Fund (formerly East Ayrshire Coalfield Area Social Inclusion Partnership) and NHS Ayrshire & Arran.
- Community Dieticians from NHS Ayrshire & Arran who originally had lead responsibility for the initiative now play an advisory role and assist Recreation Partnership Project staff to implement the project effectively.
Methodology
8. What is the particular age range and background of those at which the project is targeted?
The initiative is targeted at primary school aged children attending East Ayrshire Kids Club Network.
East Ayrshire’s Kids Clubs are open to all children living within the authority. As a proportion of the funding for the Kids Clubs comes from the Community Regeneration Fund many of these clubs have been set up within communities, which suffer from social, economic and / or rural deprivation. In order to ensure that the Kids Clubs are fully inclusive the Kids Clubs are promoted through both mainstream and special schools within the authority. One to one support can be provided for any children attending the clubs who have special needs.
9. How many people from the target group have participated in the project to date?
When this initiative was originally set up in 1999 it was implemented in Kids Clubs in the SIP area only however in June 2001 additional funding enabled the project to be rolled out into all Kids Clubs throughout the authority. Kids Clubs receive healthy snacks on a rotational basis, which means that not every Kids Club receives healthy snacks every single week. All Kids Clubs however do have access to resources, which can be utilised each week. The number of children attending clubs each week is from 15 to 35, varying from rural to urban areas.
10. Have the numbers participating matched, or been above, or below the figure expected/targeted?
Matched.
Planning
11. What was the main prompt for the initiative / where did the idea come from?
Based on information being produced both locally and nationally, and also through their day to day work, Community Dieticians from NHS Ayrshire & Arran had recognised that more work was in relation to healthy eating with primary school aged children. This was especially important in the SIP area where access to low cost fruit and vegetables was limited.
Community Dieticians were working with limited budgets and resources therefore when an opportunity arose to apply for funding from the East Ayrshire Coalfield Area Social Inclusion Partnership to carry out this type of work, a bid was submitted under the theme of ‘excluded from good health’.
12. How was the project researched?
As East Ayrshire Coalfield Area Social Inclusion Partnership was providing the funding, the area in which it would be implemented was clearly defined. The target group was also clearly defined however it was necessary for Community Dieticians to find a suitable mechanism through which to implement the initiative. The most obvious way to target primary school aged children is through the education system however with limited resources this would not have been possible, thus the reason for using the Kids Club Network.
13. Was a pilot programme conducted and, if so, was it useful?
A pilot programme was carried out in 2 Kids Clubs, selected on the basis of percentage of children receiving free school meals and clothing grants. On the whole the pilot programme ran smoothly and very few changes were required to be made before the initiative was rolled out to the other Kids Club venues. The main issues identified during the pilot, which had to be addressed were:
- How to physically get the snacks from the hospital kitchen where they were being prepared to the Kids Club venues
- How to evaluate the impact that healthy snacks within the Kids Club setting were affecting children’s eating habits in general.
Planning process: May – October 1999
Pilot Programme: November – December 1999
Initiative Start: January 2000
15. List any regulatory or other approvals (if any), which were specifically required for the project.
As it had been decided to implement the initiative via the Kids Club Network many of the approvals which would have been required had already been taken care of e.g. all Kids Club staff had been SCRO checked (now Disclosure Scotland checked), all venues had been registered by Pre-5 services, all venues were covered by East Ayrshire Council insurance, at least one member of staff at each venue was a qualified first-aider.
Kids Club staff were provided with basic food preparation and food hygiene training by the Community Dieticians prior to implementation.
Funding
16. What is the main source of funding for the project?
Three main sources of funding: East Ayrshire Council Leisure Development Section, the Community Regeneration Fund and NHS Ayrshire & Arran. A proportion of funding from each of these sources is used to fund this initiative.
17. What, if any, are the other sources of funding (e.g. sponsorship for specific aspects)?
N/A
18. Is the current funding continuous and sustainable or guaranteed only for a limited period of time?
The Recreation Partnership Project, which has lead responsibility for the initiative had initially funded the project until March 2005. This has been extended to March 2008.
19. Does the project create any revenue, which contributes to self-financing?
This particular element of the Recreation Partnership Project does not create any revenue, however other elements of the project do, which contribute to self-financing.
20. Which funding sources would you pursue, or recommend for future funding?
The Recreation Partnership Project is currently funded until March 2008.
The project is required to submit quarterly monitoring and annual evaluation reports to both the Community Regeneration Fund and NHS Ayrshire & Arran. These reports can be time consuming however they have provided the opportunity to highlight that the project has not only met all targets which were originally set but in many cases have exceeded them. It is therefore hoped that the project may be allocated additional funding from these sources.
With childhood obesity so high on the political agenda at present it is likely that additional sources of funding for this area of work may become available. It is therefore important that project staff keep up to date with developments at both local and national level with a view to long term sustainability of the project.
21. What, if any, are the significant constraints associated with the funding?
The main constraint associated with external funding is that it tends to be short term. In order for projects and initiatives such as this to make a real impact on children’s health there needs to be a commitment from central government to allocate mainstream resources to this particular area of work.
Associated with this is evidence of evaluation. It is easy for projects to provide qualitative data e.g. how many children took part. It is much harder, however, to highlight the qualitative data e.g. how a particular child who had never even tried a piece of fruit before, is now choosing to buy fruit 3 days a week from the tuck shop at school. Furthermore the real impact of initiatives such as this will not be apparent for many years however short-term funding does not provide the opportunity to track any of the children involved over a period of time.
Recruitment
22. How was/is the initiative advertised to prospective participants?
East Ayrshire Kids Club Network is promoted in a number of ways including through primary schools, local newspapers, mailshots and posters and leaflets distributed around individual communities.
23. What criteria, if any, are used for selecting participants, or are all applicants accepted?
Any primary school aged children living within East Ayrshire are eligible to attend the Kids Club Network. All Kids Clubs are fully inclusive.
24. What, if any, are the "joining" requirements (e.g. written parental permission; reference from another agency; evidence of interest/commitment from the participant etc.)?
When children attend a Kids Club for the first time their parent / guardian is required to complete a registration form giving their child permission to attend. Since the introduction of healthy snacks an extra box has been added to this form to allow parents to outline children dietary requirements and / or any food allergies, which they may have.
25. Is there a charge made to participants and, if so, for what and at what rate?
The cost for children to attend a Kids Club is £1.50 for the first child in the family and 75p for any brothers or sisters. There are however 2 discount cards in operation within East Ayrshire that provide children with free access to Kids Clubs. Once in attendance at the Kids Club there is no charge for the healthy snacks.
Activities / Sessions
26. How is the programme structured to operate in respect of participant attendance time?
Kids Clubs operate weekly (every Saturday) during term time for a 2-hour period (either 10am – 12 noon or 1pm – 3pm)
27. How often is the programme run?
At present children attending Kids Clubs receive healthy snacks on a rotational basis. This means that each Kids Club receives healthy snacks at least once per month. Since 1999 different methods of implementing the initiative have been tried e.g.
- Providing snacks at a Kids Club every week for a 5-week period and then moving onto another Kids Club for the next 5-week period. When the Kids Club is not receiving healthy snacks staff would be expected to make use of the healthy eating resources.
- Providing snacks at Kids Club every alternate week.
28. Is the programme designed to attract "new" participants each time or are participants able to attend a programme on a repeat basis if they wish to do so?
As Kids Clubs are open to all primary school aged children living within East Ayrshire many children will be involved in the initiative on a ongoing basis however new children may join a Kids Club at any time.
29. How are the sessions structured and conducted?
The provision of healthy snacks within the Kids Clubs has been developed in accordance with the feedback received from both the children and also the Kids Club staff. Sessions may vary slightly from one club to another but generally run to the following pattern:
- Children arrive at the Kids Club venue and are ticked as present on the weekly tick sheet
- Healthy snacks are either collected by a member of staff or delivered to the Kids Club venue from the local hospital
- All children take part in warm up activity games
- Children are then given the opportunity to choose between sports or arts and crafts. One member of staff leads the sports session, one member of staff leads the arts and crafts session and the other member of staff selects a small group of children to help prepare the snacks.
- Half way through the session the activities stop and children wash their hands in preparation for their snack.
- Children eat their snack as a group.
- Children are then asked to stick a star on the star chart if they liked the snack
- The same small group of children who helped prepare the snacks also help to tidy up.
- Children then go back and join the rest of the group in the activities provided.
30. Is there any follow-up to a session for the participants and, if so, in what form?
Evaluation by children of the snack in the form of a star chart.
31. Which activity / feature of the programme do you think participants enjoy / benefit from the most?
Based on the evaluation of the initiative, the children enjoy receiving a healthy snack at the Kids Club. There are however a number of other benefits of the initiative which include:
- Providing many children with their breakfast on a Saturday morning
- Providing children with the opportunity to try different types of foods they may not have access to at home.
- Educating children about the importance of eating a balanced diet
- Encouraging children to be physically active through the delivery of health eating related games and activities.
Within the Kids Club setting we work with a ratio of one member of staff to every 8 children.
Management & Staffing
33. What is the management /operational "structure" for the project)?
- The Recreation Partnership Project currently has lead responsibility for the implementation of this initiative.
- The Recreation Partnership Project sits within East Ayrshire Council’s Leisure Development Section.
- Funding for the Recreation Partnership Project comes from 3 main sources: East Ayrshire Council, the Community Regeneration Fund and NHS Ayrshire & Arran.
- Community Dieticians from Ayrshire & Arran Primary Care Trust who originally had lead responsibility for the initiative now play an advisory role and assist Recreation Partnership Project staff to implement the project effectively.
- Kids Club staff have a major role to play in the planning, organisation and implementation of this initiative.
As this initiative has been incorporated into the work of the Kids Club Network it is difficult to determine exactly how many hours are dedicated solely to the provision of healthy snacks. The Kids Club Network is planned in terms, as is the provision of healthy snacks, (i.e. January – Easter / Easter – Summer / Summer – October / October – Christmas). The initiative is most labour intensive at the start of each term when staff are required to work out which Kids Club will receive snacks on which dates, what type of snacks will be provided, how the snacks will be delivered, who will deliver the snacks and how the provision will be evaluated. After this groundwork has been done the initiative pretty much runs itself throughout the remainder of the term.
35. How many staff, if any, have been specifically recruited to work in association with the project, and in what capacity?
No staff have been recruited specifically for this initiative however certain Kids Club staff have been given specific responsibility for the implementation of this initiative.
36. What, if any, special / additional training has been required for those running the project?
Kids Club staff have been provided with training on food hygiene and food preparation. Some work has also been done with Kids Club staff regarding healthy eating in general.
Other Resources
37. What do you consider are the essential physical resources required for the project activities?
a) Type of venue:
- Games Hall
- Sports Centre
- Community Centre
- Primary School
- Clean
- Suitable area for food preparation (does not have to be a kitchen)
- Large open area suitable for delivery of games and activities
- Storage area
All Kids Clubs* were provided with:
- Chopping Boards
- Utensils
- Jugs
- Paper plates / cups / bowls
- Plastic cutlery
- Healthy Eating Resources
d) Other materials:
- Aprons
- Cleaning materials
- TV / Video
- Full set of the resources which would be given to each Kids Club
- Flip Chart / Markers
- Lap Top / Projector
38. What "luxury" resources would you recommend (e.g. any specialised equipment, training support materials) which either have or would enhance the project?
There are now a number of excellent child-friendly web sites on the topic of healthy eating which have been used to add value to this initiative. A ‘luxury’ resource would be a laptop / projector specifically for this initiative which could be rotated around the venues.
Sustainability
39. When did the project start?
Planning process: May – October 1999
Pilot Programme: November – December 1999
Initiative Start: January 2000
40. How long is the project intended to last?
The Recreation Partnership Project is currently funded until March 2008. It is intended that this initiative will continue until this time. Any future applications for additional funding for the project would also incorporate this initiative.
Evaluation
41. How is the success of the project measured?
Short term:
A number of different methods have been used including:
- Number of children participating in the sessions
- Questionnaires
- Star Charts
- Evaluation Games
- Informal feedback
- Follow up questionnaires / informal feedback to highlight change in attitude / behaviour
- Feedback from parents
All projects objectives have been met and in some cases exceeded.
43. What are your feelings about the project so far?
This initiative has been a positive addition to the work of the Recreation Partnership Project. The aim of the Recreation Partnership Project is to provide a dynamic and innovative approach towards engaging primary school aged children in health-related activities both within the school setting and in the community. This particular initiative is one way in which the project is achieving its aim.
Prior to the implementation of this initiative, many children would bring along their own snacks to the Kids Club which included crisps, chocolate and fizzy drinks. Some children do still bring along their own snack but may also choose to try one of the healthier options available to them for free. The initiative has also been extremely successful in encouraging children to try food, which they have never tried before.
The initiative has also been successful in educating children about the importance of a balanced diet as part of a healthy lifestyle. Once children have the information they are then in a position to make informed choices e.g. when they go to the tuck shop at school they may think about purchasing a healthy snack a couple of times a week rather than always choosing a fatty / sugary one.
44. What are the most significant achievements to date?
Many of the areas in which this initiative has been implemented suffer from social exclusion. As a result people living in these areas do not have access to low cost fruit and vegetables. This initiative (along with other initiatives such as free fruit in schools) has helped ensure that children living in these areas are provided with fruit and vegetables free of charge.
This initiative is educating children about the importance of a balanced diet at a young age and it is hoped that children will use at least some of this information to inform their eating habits later in life.
The concept of Local Authorities and Health Boards working in partnership to deliver the health agenda is a fairly new concept however this initiative has demonstrated a good example of successful partnership working.
45. What plans are there for the future of the project?
Ongoing monitoring and evaluation will help to ensure that the initiative continues to develop in line with the needs of each individual Kids Club. Children attending the Kids Clubs will continue to be provided with healthy snacks and staff will be provided with ongoing training and support in relation to healthy eating in general.
The Recreation Partnership Project is currently funded until March 2008. It is intended that this initiative will continue until this time. Any future applications for additional funding for the project will incorporate this initiative.
Lessons Learnt
46. What obstacles or problems have been?
- On the whole the initiative has run smoothly with very few obstacles / problems requiring to be overcome. Minor issues have included:
- Food delivery: i.e. how to get the snacks from the local hospital to the Kids Club sites, operating at the same time, over an extensive geographical area.
- Tuck shops: Initially when the initiative was launched, some of the Kids Clubs, which operated in Games Halls, ran tuck shops which sold items such as fizzy drinks, crisps and chocolate. These tuck shops were a source of income for the venues and it was therefore unrealistic to expect them to stop selling these items to children attending the Kids Clubs.
- Evaluation: i.e. deciding on the most appropriate method of evaluation of the initiative.
- The food delivery problem has been overcome by snacks being provided on a rotational basis. Kids Clubs, situated close together, are provided with snacks on the same dates.
- The tuck shop issues has been overcome, to some extent, by Kids Club staff working to encourage the children to at least try some of the healthy options available to them and also to encourage the parents to give their children less money to spend on tuck shops.
- The solution regarding evaluation has been trial and error of a number of different methods. The most appropriate methods appear to be the ones where staff can obtain relevant information from the children with minimal disruption to the Kids Club session.
Key Learning Points
- Ensure that you recruit staff that are highly motivated and genuinely care about the initiative.
- Set realistic targets to be achieved within realistic timescales.
- A pilot initiative provides the perfect opportunity to test the water.
- Consultation with your client group is essential – what they want and what you think they want are often miles apart!
- Ensure that appropriate systems for monitoring and evaluation are put in place right from the start.
- Value the input that a range of partners can have on the impact of the services delivered by your project.
- Word of mouth is one of the best methods of promotion.
- Always maintain the ability to adapt and be flexible.
- Never lose sight of what it is you are trying to achieve.
- Some of the most far-fetched ideas often turn out to be the most successful!
The Recreation Partnership Project has been cited as an example of good practice at both local and national level. Some examples are given below.
- Selected by SIP as a demonstration of good practice for a promotional document currently being produced.
- Selected to make presentations and lead workshops at local and national conferences and seminars led by neighbouring local authorities, NHS Ayrshire and Arran, Strathclyde University, ILAM Scotland and sport Scotland.
- Contacted by a range of local authorities and other national organisations regarding the services delivered by the project.
- Acknowledged as an example of good practice in the Scottish Executive document ‘Child Poverty in Social Inclusion Partnerships’ and East Ayrshire Council’s Community Plan.
This project has completed and as such no longer has contact details.