The Act
3.The Act has two main themes: health promotion in schools (sections 1 and 2) and the provision of food and drink in schools (sections 3 to 9).
4.Sections 1 and 2 make provision imposing duties on the Scottish Ministers, education authorities(1) and managers of grant aided schools to endeavour to ensure that public schools and grant-aided schools are health-promoting.
5.Section 3 inserts new sections into the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 (the “1980 Act”) which place duties on education authorities and managers of grant aided schools to ensure that all food and drink provided in schools, unless specifically exempt by the Act, complies with nutritional requirements, specified by regulations. Section 5 makes provision for education authorities to consider the nutritional requirements in situations where they enter into an arrangement with regard to a pupil’s education in an independent school.
6.Through the amendment of section 53 of the 1980 Act and the addition of new sub-sections to that section, the Act also amends the powers of education authorities to provide food and drink to pupils other than at lunch time.
7.Specific duties are also placed on education authorities to require the promotion of school lunches and to require the protection of the identity of those receiving free school lunches. Section 9 also places a duty on education authorities to have consideration to any sustainable development guidance issued by Scottish Ministers when providing food and drinks in schools or services relating to the provision of that food or drink.