Grab Fast Or Go Without: Shalom’s School Food Story
10 Apr 2026
Bite Back activist Shalom speaks up on school food, and why the Government’s consultation is the perfect opportunity for change
Hi, I’m Shalom! If you asked me for my school food core memory, it wouldn’t be one perfect lunch tray or one amazing meal. It would be the feeling of finally getting through the crowded lunch queue, just to see that today’s menu is the same as yesterday! And the day before that, and the day before that, and the day before that…
The shelves are filled with packaged sandwiches, pizza slices, paninis, and fizzy drinks, the smell of pastry and cheese dampening the air.
It looks colourful and tempting at first glance, but week after week, it becomes beige, bland and boring.
Where are the healthy options?
If healthier options are available, they are hidden towards the back, as if never there at all, while the quickest and cheapest choices are usually the least filling and least nutritious. That moment, deciding whether to rush and get something from “grab-and-go”, skip lunch, or settle for whatever’s left, is a feeling many young people know too well.
Grab-and-go choices are the easiest to reach but not beneficial for our health. If the only fast option is something expensive, sugary, and not filling, then we’re being pushed towards options that don’t truly protect our health. With unhealthy food flooding canteens, young people are struggling to come up for air, and it’s about time we are thrown a lifeline.
Why listening to young people matters
Joining Bite Back and speaking up about this issue feels not only powerful, but necessary. There’s something fantastic about being in a space where young people’s real experiences are treated as evidence, not just opinions. School food is something we consume every day, so who better to talk about it than us?
Before joining Bite Back, I’d spoken about school food in conversations in my Youth Council, and it made me realise the patterns in every young person’s story. If so many of us believe a change needs to be made, does that not make change vital? This was something that originally motivated me to join Bite Back. Being a part of a campaign that pushes for change makes it feel like change can really happen. We are turning frustration into action.
Our latest research about grab-and-go emphasised what we already know from experience. Numbers can sometimes feel distant, but in this case, they reflect young people’s reality: healthier options cost more, or simply aren’t available when students need them most.
For young people, school food can affect everything.
From focus in lessons, mood, health, attendance, and even confidence. School should be a place where everyone has the same chance to succeed, and that becomes harder when something as basic as lunch depends on money, timing, or luck. The meal that may be the only one a young person eats, should be affordable and replenishing to help young people power through the day.
In my ideal world, a school canteen in England would be a place where healthy food is the standard, not a luxury. Young people deserve affordable meals that are nourishing, dishes that offer variety and diversity, and school halls with enough seating and time to eat properly.
Most importantly, student voices should shape what gets served. If school food is designed without students, it ignores what we actually need.
Why school food in England needs to change
Now is exactly the right time to improve school food because young people are already speaking clearly: the current system isn’t working. With rising food prices affecting families in the cost of living crisis and more attention on young people’s health, we must take this chance to influence changes that matter long term.
Support for our campaign shows that young voices aren’t speaking into silence, and helps us turn lived experience into pressure for progress. It reminds decision makers that this isn’t just a small issue, but one that affects millions of students every day. It’s time to take action. Spreading Bite Back’s message, questioning what food gets served in canteens, and contacting decision makers are all steps towards creating a healthier school environment. The biggest, most monumental change happens when young voices and public support collaborate together.
If I had one message for people who support us, it would be simple: school food might seem small, but it shapes every school day. If we want healthier futures, better concentration, and fairer opportunities, then what we fuel ourselves with is incredibly important.
The Government’s upcoming consultation on the School Food Standards for England is our chance to make sure they commit to prioritising children’s health.
This is our once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to change school food for the future. Support me and my fellow activists by making our message too loud to ignore.