Food & Nutrition

As a member of Northern Ambition Academies Trust, we ensure that our curriculum is ambitious, rich in skills and knowledge, develops independent learning, promotes diversity, curiosity and tolerance of other cultures alongside incorporating the Trust’s values of Ambition, Bravery and Respect.

Food is a vital part of our daily lives and is essential for life. As our students become adults and have busy lives, it is easy to choose food which has been ready prepared. However, it is more nutritious and often cheaper to cook simple, delicious food.

At Airedale Academy students will develop their knowledge and understanding of nutrition, healthy eating, food preparation, hygiene, cooking techniques, and sensory characteristics.

Airedale Academy’s curriculum intent statement:

• Give our students vital life skills that enable them to feed themselves and others affordably and nutritiously, now and later in life,
• Encourage the development of high skills and resilience in a safe environment, allowing students to demonstrate commitment and act on feedback,
• Encourage students to enable them to follow a recipe and substitute ingredients and cooking methods as appropriate, demonstrating an understanding of food choices e.g. veganism, allergies and healthy eating.
• Develop understanding that will allow students to become discriminating consumers of food products, enabling them to participate in society in an active and informed manner,
• Engage with students to encourage them to understand the environmental factors which affect the inequalities in food distribution on a global scale and give them an understanding of the need to minimise ‘food waste’ starting with their own practice,
• Allow students to explore a number of multicultural perspectives concerning food. Students will enhance their understanding, appreciation and acceptance of people from a variety of cultural backgrounds through the preparation of food from different countries,
• Encourage our students to develop an awareness and acceptance of diversity within our community.

• Students have 1 hour per week in rotation with Design and Technology, this results in 1 Term of study per year at KS3,
• Students access the KS3 National Curriculum for Food and Nutrition in Years 7 to 9 to progress to the Eduqas Level 2 Award in Hospitality and Catering qualification at KS4,
• Students plan, prepare and cook a range of dishes that allows them to,
• Develop the required planning, preparation, cooking and presentation techniques,
• Work with the required range of ingredients, nutrients and vitamins,
• Produce a healthy and balanced diet,
• ·Students use a range of Technical language, tier 3 vocabulary, targeted for assessment,
• Students are assessed on Practical Skill, Independence, Planning, Evaluation and their comprehension and use of Technical language.

• Students will have the creative, technical and practical expertise needed to perform everyday tasks confidently to prepare and cook dishes,
• Students will use a wide range of ingredients,
• Students will make high quality, healthy and nutritious dishes for a wide range of people,
• Students will evaluate dishes/ menus/ diets with respect to healthy and balanced diets,
• Students will be able to make informed food/ diet decisions even when not preparing and cooking their own food,
• Students are prepared for post 16 learning or routes into local employers in Hospitality and Catering industries,
• Students are able to make a positive contribution to Hospitality and Catering industries.