WHAT a tasty way to start the new year!

Westlea Primary School’s delicious dinners are officially top of the class after receiving a special Gold award from Food For Life for being so nutritious and healthy.

Dinner lady Claire Baldwin received the honour from the scheme's representative Alisdair Griffett during a special celebratory assembly.

Mr Griffett said: “This is a very special day for the school because Mrs Baldwin has worked really hard to make this happen.

"I go all over the UK and have had a lot of school dinners - yours has some of the best in the country, they're fantastic. Very few schools receive this award."

Sarah Sumner helped lead the charge to raise the standards of school dinners high enough to win the Gold award when she was acting headteacher.

She said: "One of the things we really care about at this school is making sure the pupils are healthy and well looked after.

"We wanted the food here to be the best because for some pupils, it's their main cooked meal of the day. It was hard work but if you want something, you have to put a lot of work in.

"It took just under a year for us to achieve a re-evaluation to receive the Gold award. We were so close last time but missed out, then Alisdair gave me a ring to tell me the good news.

"It's been great fun and we really enjoyed it. Our Christmas dinner was one of the best I've ever had, we offered breakfasts for pupils who walked and cycled to school, and we ran a workshop to help parents cook healthy meals on a budget."

Mrs Sumner has now stepped into the top job full-time and hopes that her work with deputy headteacher Louise Edmonds and chair of governors Bob Barratt will issue in a bright new era for the school.

She said: “Launching the new year with this award shows the sort of high standards that we want to permeate through the school. Alongside this, we launched a new dress code and the children looked very smart during the assembly.

"The children need and deserve the best possible education and opportunities. We are focusing on good behaviour, develop more outdoor learning opportunities and productive positive play areas, raising standards across the whole school experience, and improving communication, language and socialising.

"The aim is to instil a sense of pride at being part of Westlea School and being at the heart of the community. We have a very talented team of staff and a supportive governing body who want to the best for pupils and staff."