ASSIST FM has been delighted to team up with key supplier partner McCain Foods to bring a suite of free resources to schools across Scotland which tell the farm to fork journey story.  A key focus area of ASSIST FM this year has been to support and celebrate sustainability initiatives, not just by our members but also our suppliers. McCain has recently partnered with education content provider Earth Cubs to create an animated film and lesson plan, bringing the story of farm to fork to life.  The resources provided by Earth Cubs explain sustainable farming methods in a way that is fun and interesting for pupils. The resources are primarily focused at primary aged pupils and will be updated regularly with new and exciting materials exploring soil health and environmental impact across farming, transport, manufacturing and packaging.

National Chair Nicky Joiner said:

“It has been great to work with the team at McCain – their shared vision for a sustainable future fits with the ethos of celebrating success in Local Authority supply chains to continually improve products to our pupils.  Education of such an important topic is vital to ensuring the next generation have the knowledge to make informed choices on the provenance and sustainability of foods they may choose to eat.  The videos provided by Earth Cubs are such an easy watch for younger pupils and I’m sure will be used widely by education colleagues across Local Authorities”

Rosie Tootell, Sustainability Director, McCain Foods GB

“Founded by a family of farmers, agriculture is at the heart of our business, and we are committed to ensuring that farming is sustainable for the future.  As part of this commitment, we are partnering with our growers to implement regenerative agriculture practices across 100% of our potato acreage by 2030. We are delighted to be sharing our on the ground experience with young people through Earth Cubs.”

What is McCain doing?

So, what is regenerative agriculture? We define it as an ecosystem-based approach to farming that aims to improve farmer resilience, yield, and quality by improving and restoring soil health, enhancing biodiversity, and reducing the impact of chemicals on the environment.

McCain’s ambitious aim for 2030

We are committed that 100% of our potato crop will involve regenerative agricultural practices by the end of the decade. Regenerative agricultural practices will help secure the quality and quantity of our crop into the future. And that means we should be able to access a reliable supply of the very best potato products for our consumers.

You can find out more here about our broad approach – https://www.mccain.co.uk/sustainability/smart-sustainable-farming/

All school resources can be found below – these are a great resource for sharing with schools  and a great link to the sustainable supply chain within Local Authority Caterers – please do share these with education colleagues!

Quick link to Earth Cubs video episode on YouTube – A Potato’s Dream=

View the episode and further resources on Earth Cubs – register for free

Find out more about  McCain Foods GB – Earth Cubs

ParentPay Group’s Regional School Meals Report surveys parents from all four UK regions for the first time

Following on from the launch of the National School Meals Report in July, this landmark study provides a detailed regional breakdown of parents’ and carers’ views on school meal services across England, Wales, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. Now in its fourth year, this research helps support local school caterers in making informed decisions on their catering operation.

Key highlights include:

Keith Bell, managing director for ParentPay Group’s Catering and Payments business units, commented: ‘I’m delighted to be continually bringing this valuable research to the school catering industry. The feedback ParentPay Group received from the launch of the National report was fantastic, and we hope being able to see results by region will continue to be beneficial for schools and caterers. I’m also pleased to say that this report features a dedicated breakdown from respondents in Northern Ireland for the first time, with 4,252 parents completing the survey. We hope this helps to provide valuable insights for school meal providers in this region.’

When discussing allergy management, a surveyed parent from Scotland added: “The school is very supportive with my child’s allergy and have kept me included in all harm reduction practices put in place. The school always contact me with any concerns, and I have faith that the school do their best to keep my child safe.”

The Regional School Meals report contains valuable insights and contributions from LACA England, LACA Wales, ASSIST FM, and the EANI as representatives for each region. Judith Gregory, chair of LACA and contributor for LACA Wales said ‘LACA proposed new questions for 2024 to further help school caterers understand the parent view of school meal provision, including how the use of local ingredients may impact the uptake of school meals, and how much respondents are paying on average for a school meal per day. Parents in Wales with secondary school-aged children are paying the most, with 66% spending more that £2.80 per meal – this will be a useful benchmark to track year on year. I’d like to take the opportunity to thank the contributors from LACA, ASSIST FM, and the EANI for their input in pulling together this report, demonstrating the continual effort to ensure school meal providers have as much data as possible on their local meal service.’

The research covers themes such as:

You can access the full report here.

As we bid farewell to 2023, let’s take a moment to look back at some of the highlights and milestones that made this year one to remember.

Over the past 12 months, we have been providing support to our members and partner organisations as well as promoting and enhancing service delivery for public sector organisations in Scotland. Here are some of the highlights:

ASSIST FM Conference 2023

The ASSIST FM ‘What’s your reality?’ conference, sponsored by Müller Milk & Ingredients, took place in May at the Hilton Glasgow and focused on the future of the facilities management industry and explored the reality of what lies ahead.

We had a fantastic lineup of 55 exhibitors made up of long-time partners, recurring suppliers and new suppliers who brought real innovation to the public sector. We also had the opportunity to hear from fantastic speakers on a range of topics and our Keynote speaker was the wonderful Cor Hutton who shared an inspiring story that left everyone on a high!

We held our annual Local Authority Cook of the Year (LACOTY) competition to determine the menu for the Conference’s Gala Dinner. Six Local Authorities competed at The Braehead Cook School in March. The judges Willie Pike and Bruce Sangster selected the top three dishes (Best starter, main, and dessert), and the 3 finalists went head-to-head at the Glasgow Hilton with Nicola Arnold from Edinburgh Council announced as the winner of the LACOTY competition during the Gala Dinner. The LACOTY competition continues to be a resounding success!

The Gala Dinner, hosted by ASSIST FM’s very own Keith Breasley, featured an awards ceremony where 10 National Awards were presented.

Parliamentary Event

The ASSIST FM Committee had a fantastic day in October at The Scottish Parliament in partnership with Food for Life Scotland.

“It’s a pleasure to work in partnership with Food for Life (FFL) and to celebrate the school food heroes who go above and beyond in the community in which they serve,” shared Chris Ross, Chair of ASSIST FM.

Autumn Seminar

In November, we hosted the Autumn Seminar where invited partners presented their latest innovative products. The event welcomed all 32 Local Authorities FM employees for a day filled with seminars, break-out activities, and an exceptional lunch provided by Fife Council at the Glen Pavilion.

Exciting news to wrap up the year!

Christopher Ross has been recognised as one of the Top 20 Most Influential People in public sector catering.

The list comprises people who are the industry’s leading lights based on their ability to represent the concerns of people working in the sector, as well as their capacity to drive change. They cover schools, universities, hospitals, the care sector, prisons and catering colleges. Congratulations Chris, we are so proud of you!

A heartfelt thank you to everyone for your continuous support and for making this year unforgettable! We hope you have a wonderful Christmas and New Year, and look forward to the exciting journey that we will be undertaking in 2024.

 

 

 

After 9 years of successfully running the Scottish School Cook of The Year competition, ASSIST FM decided to widen the scope of its premier individual catering award by opening the criteria and running our first ever ASSIST Scottish Local Authority Chef of the Year competition. 

We are very grateful to our sponsor Müller Milk & Ingredients for their support of our organisation and for their continued sponsorship.

The winning dishes from this competition were featured at our 2023 Annual Conference in May hosted by the Hilton Glasgow. The competition itself was judged based on the best starter, main course and dessert on the day at The Cook School Scotland with Chef judges Willie Pike and Bruce Sangster. We had five councils involved in the competition: Scottish Borders, Stirling, East Lothian, Edinburgh and East Ayrshire. 

Willie Pike said: ‘We love good food and good skills and these were shown in abundance by the competitors with some stand out dishes and techniques. The Councils and the competitors should be very proud of what was delivered at The Cook School Scotland today.’’ 

The three contestants who were crowned as the three finalists were: 

Nicola Arnold – Edinburgh Council

 Martyn Cuthbert – East Ayrshire Council

 Jamie Kimmett – Stirling Council 

The three winning individuals then had the opportunity to cook alongside the Hilton Chefs and produce their dishes for the Conference Gala Dinner.

Nicola Arnold from Edinburgh Council was announced by Claire Doyle from Müller Milk and Ingredients as the winner at the evening gala dinner with her starter, Textures of Beetroot, Candied, Roasted, Puree, Pickled and Crisp Hazelnut and her dessert, Cranachan Baked Cheesecake with Whisky Mist. 

Nicola said that “a modern twist on seasonal traditional food” was the inspiration for her menu. 

We look forward to holding this competition in 2024 and allowing other Local Authority chefs to shine!

 

 

The ASSIST Spring Seminar sponsored by Robert Wiseman Dairies was a great success. In a departure from the usual format, ASSIST created an event that is relevant to all of us – The Secondary School Meals Summit. Compered by Lorraine Herbison of Radio Clyde the seminar saw presentations from Sharon Cameron and Sue Nield of Highland Council, Ellen McFarlane of West Dunbartonshire Council, Bill Kennedy of Tayside Contracts, Judith Borg of Falkirk Council, Fergus Chambers of Cordia, Alan Cunningham of Totalize Media and Ken Campbell, Chair of ASSIST. The topics ranged from healthy vending to media campaigns and from budgets to pre-ordering. Scottish School Meals Week was also launched.The presentations for the seminar are below. Thanks once again to Robert Wiseman Dairies for making the event possible.

Speakers’ Presentations Below you will find a selection of PowerPoint Presentations* shown at the seminar. Click on a link to view the presentation.

Alan Cunningham

Bill Kennedy

Ellen McFarlane

Fergus Chambers

Sue Nield & Sharon Cameron

Ian Shepherd

Judith Borg

Ken Campbell

*Note: In order to view the presentations above, Microsoft PowerPoint must be installed on your computer. If you do not have PowerPoint, you may download the free PowerPoint Viewer by clicking here.

The ASSIST Conference was held in Glasgow for the first time, with the delegate sessions and exhibition being held in the City Halls and Old Fruitmarket. Compered by Viv Lumsden, the Conference saw presentations from Neil Schneider, Chief Executive Officer, Stockton Council, Terry Lanagan, Executive Director of Education, West Dunbartonshire Council, Sarah Gadsden, Director, Improvement Service, Iain Waddell, MD, Tayside Contracts, Alistair McIntyre, Head of Catering, Scottish Borders Council, Janice Gillan, Chair Hospital Caterers Association, and Hugh Stuart, William Tracey Waste Management.

Speakers’ Presentations Below you will find a selection of PowerPoint Presentations* shown at the seminar. Click on a link to view the presentation.

Sarah Gadsden

Janice Gillan

Terry Lanagan

Bobby Gavin

Alistair McIntyre

*Note: In order to view the presentations above, Microsoft PowerPoint must be installed on your computer. If you do not have PowerPoint, you may download the free PowerPoint Viewer by clicking here.

Two ASSIST FM Seminars were held in Dunfermline and Aviemore on 21st/22nd February 2017. Both were very successful and delegates have been very positive about the content, and especially the new Obesity campaign.

Thanks to everyone for coming, as well as the speakers and the partners who attended.Here are the presentation links for powerpoint presentations:

ASSIST Education Scotland

Procurement section seminar Feb 2017

ASSIST SEMINARS ASSIST OBESITY CAMPAIGN AND EVENTS

For the Food For Life and FDFS powerpoints please contact Joe Hind and Moira Stalker respectively.

ASSIST CONFERENCE 2013 – TALKING HEADS

29-30 August – Caledonian University, Glasgow

This year’s ASSIST conference, sponsored by Muller Wiseman, will be held in Glasgow for the third year running.The venue for the Conference and Exhibition is Glasgow Caledonian University. The theme for this year’s conference is ‘Talking Heads’.Conference Delegates will be coming from councils all over Scotland from Highland and Moray in the north to the Scottish Borders in the south, and will include the decision makers for purchasing FM related products.As Bill Kennedy, National Chair of ASSIST states, ‘Our theme for the Conference this year is ‘Talking Heads’ – one of the key objectives for ASSIST is to generate discussion and information-sharing between councils – we are not in competition with each other and we need to share best practice and lessons learned. That’s what the launch of our Scottish School Meals site has been all about. It is really important for each authority to look at ways it can improve its service, even when budgets are being cut. Marketing is an important part of that mix.’This year ASSIST has great mix of speakers including Rory Mair, Chief Executive Officer, COSLA, David Mories from The Glasgow 2014, Commonwealth Games organisation, Elsie Downham of The Soil Association, Colin Mair, Chief Executive Officer of The Improvement Service, Marie-Claire James of The Federation of Chefs Scotland, and James Anthony.Each of our speakers will give their own individual takes on what the delegates can do to develop their business. We purposely invited key influencers from government and local authorities this year to give us their take on the future of Facilities management within Scottish local authorities.Bill goes on to say, ‘ASSIST as an organisation was established to create and present a shared voice on all matters relating to Facilities Management throughout Scotland’s 32 local authorities. The organisation is even more important today than ever. As it is a difficult year for council finances we have frozen our delegate fee at £95, thanks in part to sponsorship from Muller Wiseman, and our exhibitors. We work closely with all our suppliers and our exhibition this year will have 46 stands. All will be exhibiting products that fit our members specifications, and some have created products specifically for our market.’The format for the conference will remain as in past years with the supplier exhibition taking place on Day One.

Exhibitors this year include:

BRAKES UNICO PREMIER CRB MULLER CALYPSO BATLEYS GREEN GOURMET QUORN 3663 CATERING FALCON MCCAIN FOOD PARTNERS ARROW SUPPLIES COOLDELIGHT MULLER WISEMAN HARFIELD NRS NISBETS DIVERSEY THERMOBOX SPACERIGHT PARENT PAY FDH AGBARR UK FOODHALL COOK SCHOOL FIFE CREAMMERY GT CLEANING SECRET SAUSAGES SCOMAC HOBART SOIL ASSOCIATION ER MOFFAT UNILEVER CONTRACT FURNITURE SPECIALISTS IDEAL BUNZL CHS BUNZL CATERING SUPPLIES DR OETKER PASTA KING ROLLOVER MAKRO KARCHER ETI CARING INT NESTLE

Bill Kennedy is keen that ASSIST continues to address important issues for all its members. ‘This year we will be launching a major Commonwealth Promotion as well as highlighting updates to our website, running a third Scottish School Cook of The Year promotion, and introducing a new ASSIST Awards scheme for Scotland. There will be three awards at this year’s conference:

ASSIST Chair Award – last year’s winner was Craig Stevenson of Braehead Foods, for services to industry and continued support of ASSIST.

ASSIST Scottish School Cook of The Year – last year won by Norrie Scott of Tayside Contracts.

ASSIST Best Stand – last year won by Green Gourmet.

The ASSIST website is www.assistfm.comThe School meals site is at www.scottishschoolmeals.co.ukIf you wish to contact ASSIST please email: info@assistfm.com or call Alan Cunningham for more information on 07768 584517.