A Norfolk pastry chef has launched a project which aims to get primary school children and their families cooking nutritious meals during lockdown.
When Emily Southgate, a pastry chef from Corpusty in north Norfolk was furloughed, she decided to use her newfound free-time to launch, Fuel, a food box project which aims to get youngsters and their families enjoying and learning how to cook during the pandemic.
The project sees Miss Southgate, with the help of her family, deliver weekly 'Get Set Cook' boxes to families from Corpusty Primary School, which has partnered up with Miss Southgate for the scheme.
Each box contains recipe cards and all the necessary ingredients to make a nutritious meal and various snacks during the week. Recipes are focussed to enable the children to make them themselves.
Miss Southgate said the aim of the project, which is being crowdfunded through a Just Giving Page, was to support local families and encourage creativity with food.
She said: "If I was little I would have loved it and I think [cooking] is a skill that really is learnt from a young age."
Jacqui Lound, the head of Corpusty Primary School, said when Miss Southgate first approached the school it came at a time when families were struggling with lockdown and homeschooling.
She said: "What Emily has done is put together some really child-friendly recipe cards, she has really carefully planned the recipe cards, not wanting to assume families would have certain things in their kitchen."
Mrs Lound said since the project was started pupils had been sharing photos of what they had been cooking each week.
She said: "[The scheme] has got off to a flying start and the feedback from parents is that it's been such a highpoint in the middle of the week when they're stuck at home.
"To have something to look forward to, it's like a breath of fresh air, it's such a gift to the families but also to us as a school we really care about our families.
"It's really positive," she said.
To help fund Fuel visit: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/fuelboxes
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