Chartwells launches Spotlight Sessions – an innovative way to deliver food education
The need to educate and equip younger generations with vital information to make informed decisions about food has never been more urgent. With rising interest in sustainability, food origins and healthy lifestyles, children today are growing up in a world where food education is essential. That’s why we’ve launched a new digital ‘Spotlight Sessions’ series, an engaging educational initiative that brings important food topics to life in classrooms across the UK.
Delivered to primary and preparatory schools as part of our award-winning Beyond The Chartwells Kitchen programme, these digital workshops are designed to reach as many pupils as possible across our partner schools. By combining interactive digital learning with expert-led storytelling, the sessions aim to deepen pupils’ understanding of where food comes from, how it impacts our health and planet, and how individual choices matter whilst making learning fun, relevant and accessible.
Each Spotlight Session has been carefully developed with teachers, for teachers, to offer a complete, time-saving digital learning experience that enriches the classroom. Designed to support food, science and PSHE-related learning, each 45-minute session features a film accompanied by a comprehensive suite of teaching resources, including detailed lesson plans, activity sheets and extension activities. The content is aligned with the Key Stage 2 Science and PSHE curriculum, ensuring it meets national standards, and has been crafted with input from educational specialists to suit a range of learning styles. With trusted experts bringing the topics to life, and a strong focus on real-world relevance, interactivity and inclusive delivery, the series equips schools with everything they need to run compelling workshops that are both memorable and impactful.
The first lesson in the new digital series shines a spotlight on where our food comes from and why bumblebees play such a vital role in our food system. Created in collaboration with the Bumblebee Conservation Trust and presented by much-loved children’s TV presenter, chef and food educator Allegra McEvedy, this inaugural film explores key curriculum themes such as pollination, plant lifecycles, sustainability, PSHE, and healthy eating. Through storytelling, science and food-based education, the session encourages young people to reflect on their connection to nature and the importance of protecting pollinators to safeguard our food future.
This engaging, expert-led digital experience is designed not only to educate but also to entertain, making it easier than ever for schools to embed food education into the classroom in a way that is impactful, inspiring and fun.
Olivia Pratt, Head of Nutrition and Sustainability, Chartwells added: “Just as children are taught how to read and write, we’re passionate about teaching them to eat well – not only for their health but for the planet they’re going to inherit too. By bringing food and nutrition education to life through interactive workshops or experiences, such as those we run through our Beyond the Chartwells Kitchen programme, we can help set children up with the tools and knowledge they need to make positive choices around food, nutrition, wellbeing, and sustainability. We are committed to ensuring young people really love food and become passionate about what they can do to protect their physical health, their mental health, and their planet."