The Western Australian Council of State School Associations (WACSSO) recently sought and published legal advice and gathered information from the Fairwork Ombudsman regarding pay rates for Public schools. This advice stated:
“The activities of a school canteen are generally consistent with the definition of the fast food industry as defined in clause 3.1 of the Fast Food Award.
The Fast Food Industry Award 2010 (MA000003) is the most appropriate modern award for employees of a school canteen under a formal leasing agreement.”
Public school P&C Associations can contact WACSSO for advice via their website
Due to the diversity of P&C’s and their school community, canteen staff may be paid under the State or Federal Award. You are encouraged to contact:
- State: the Department of Commerce and Wageline on 1300 655 266, or see the Restaurant, Tearoom and Caterers Award details
- Federal: Fairwork, or see the Fast Food Industry Award details.
See the Business of running a school canteen factsheet for more information
We also encourage you to look at the Human Resources page where you will find interview questions, staff review template, job description template and canteen report to the parent body template.
Operating a canteen at school is a great way to support healthy eating and creative a supportive environment. Before you get started consider the steps in our 8 steps to a new school food service fact sheet.
There is usually no single factor responsible for a canteen that has previously been profitable, to start losing money. It is far more likely to be a combination of factors. See the “Why aren’t we making a profit?” fact sheet to determine some of the problems.
Foodcore offers one-on-one consultancies to schools who require a comprehensive review of operations and their financial position. A consultancy involves a meeting with canteen staff, parent body and principal; a review of canteen operations and menu; review of financial practices and status; and a comprehensive report with recommendations.
Please email foodcore@education.wa.edu.au to obtain further details including fees.
All food businesses, including school canteens, must follow the Food Act 2008,the Food Regulations 2009 and the National Food Safety Standards, including, 3.2.2A – Food Safety Management Tools.
This means school canteen staff and volunteers must complete food handler training and must appoint a Food Safety Supervisor who has completed Accredited Food Safety training.
Food Safety Supervisor
- Foodcore provide Accredited Food Safety Supervisor training that includes two units of competency
- SITXFSA005 – Use hygienic practices for food safety
- SITXFSA006 – Participate in safe food handling practices.
- Our course has been tailored to school canteens, all assessments are completed on the day.
- Networking with Foodcore staff and other school canteens is factored into every session.
- To see available dates and to enrol see the Training page.
- Foodcore delivers this training on behalf of NAQ Nutrition Training who is an approved Registered Training Organisation (RTO 110074).
What is Food handler Training?
Foodcore recommend FoodSafe Food Handler training.
- Foodcore provides free access to FoodSafe® online training for Foodcore members. FoodSafe is based on best practices, is comprehensive and includes access to a range of templates. Online training is a convenience options for self-paced trianing. However, training packages can be purchased from Environmental Health Australia is you wanted to conduct the trianing as a group at your school/organisation http://www.eh.org.au/resources/foodsafe.
- Food Safety Australia have a number of courses online that are easily accessed, the equivalent training to FoodSafe is the Food Handlers Certificate Course which is $79 to complete online
- Many local councils have subscribed to training called ‘I’m Alert’. Whilst it is not as comprehensive as FoodSafe, it may be considered a good first step for volunteers. Anyone can access it for free through local council websites e.g. City of Fremantle
Do school canteen staff and volunteers have to complete All about Allergens Training?
If you are based in a government school canteen then yes, you need to complete All About Allergens training as this forms part of compliance with the with the WA Department of Education’s Student Health in Public Schools Policy and Procedures.
- Free online course, takes approx 60 minutes
- Gain knowledge about food allergens, and develop best practice procedures to ensure safe food provision to students and staff with food allergy.
Children are not permitted in the canteen; including young children of staff and volunteers, as well as school age children.
Why?
- Check your insurance policy as the majority of canteen/P&C insurance does not cover students or children
- The canteen is a workplace; under the Occupational Safety and Health Act it is not permissible to introduce a hazard into the workplace. Young children especially would be considered a hazard
- Hot ovens, cook-tops, boiling water and sharp knives can make the canteen a hazardous place for children
- Under the Food Standards Code, the canteen must ensure that anyone who is handling food has the skills and knowledge to prepare food safety; young children cannot be expected to have necessary skills in food safety and food hygiene matters.
The only exception to this is students accessing the canteen as part of a supervised school activity linked to the curriculum such as cooking session with teacher supervision; or by special arrangement with canteen staff e.g. VET students may arrange work experience in the canteen. If this is the case in your school, we recommend canteen staff meet with the P&C and principal to make this decision together and determine an implementation plan.
No. Canteens and other food service businesses should not sell (or provide) foods made at home by parents/volunteers/staff through the canteen/food service. This represents a food safety and food allergen risk. All food should be prepared onsite (as permitted by the local council) and/or bought from commercial suppliers. For more information about the level of food preparation allowed in your food business contact the local council Environmental Health Officer.
All food businesses must be registered with the local council. The school has a ‘duty of care’ to ensure food produced and consumed within the school is safe. Please contact your local Environmental Health Officer who will be able to tell you what level of food preparation is permitted. See your local council website for contact details.
With permission from parents/guardians, school canteens may choose to display the students name, photo and the foods they are allergic to, in the canteen as a reminder to canteen staff and volunteers. This can be done by displaying the student’s ASCIA Action Plan (which also includes a photo of the student). The ASCIA Action Plan should be in clear view of staff working in the canteen, but not visible to customers.
Avoidance of known allergens is crucial in the management of anaphylaxis. Schools need to work with parents/guardians and students to minimise a student’s exposure to known allergens.
School canteens can support the school in allergy and anaphylaxis management in a number of ways which include:
- Liaising with school administration regarding appropriate risk minimisation strategies for the school canteen and supporting the school’s anaphylaxis management strategies
- Food banning is not recommended, however some school communities may choose not to stock peanut and tree nut products (including nut spreads) as one of the school’s risk minimisation strategies
- Ensuring canteen staff and volunteers are educated about food allergy and how to prevent cross contamination when preparing, storing, handling, displaying and serving food, all staff and volunteers should complete All about Allergens training for schools
- With permission from parents/guardians, canteen staff (including volunteers) should be informed about students at risk of anaphylaxis, preventative strategies in place and the information in their ASCIA Action Plans
- With permission from parents/guardians, school canteens may choose to display the students name, photo and the foods they are allergic to, in the canteen as a reminder to canteen staff and volunteers. Liaising with parents/guardians about safe food for the food allergic student.
For more information visit Home – Food Allergy Training – Resources.
The Department of Education confirmed (2024) no items currently sold in school canteens have been banned under recent changes. Canteens can operate as usual and take the time they need to consult with Principals and their communities, and make any adaptations to their canteen menu that also take into account operation needs like workload and financial considerations.
This means, if a school is satisfied and comfortable with their current menu, they can still continue to offer this and use the Star Choice™ Buyers Guide as a menu planning tool.
For more detailed information please review the Interpreting the WA school food policy, published 26 March 2024
No. The Policy is underpinned by the Australian Dietary Guidelines. While these guidelines do not take into account additives and preservatives the recommendation is that fresh is best and therefore reduces the overall consumption of additives and preservative. Food Standards of Australia and New Zealand are the government body that sets limits for all additives and preservatives in foods made in or imported to Australia. If you would like more information download our Food Additives fact sheet or visit FSANZ.
Yes. The policy is mandated in all public schools, this includes independent public schools. The Catholic Education Office has also mandated a policy based on the HFD policy.
The Department of Education has confirmed the Star Choice Nutrient Criteria and therefore the Star Choice™ Buyers Guide can continued to be used as a menu planning tool. Use the Guide to see if the product is listed or to source an alternate variety.
Coffee drinks such as iced coffee and mocha are permitted for sale in high schools only. To be eligible for sale drinks must be less than 375ml and be made with reduced fat milk. To see if there are any registered/approved coffee flavoured milk drinks available in WA check the registered product list or your Buyers Guide. Coffee prepared in the canteen should be made with decaffeinated coffee. Please contact Foodcore for further information.
Green
- Plain water or mineral water
- Plain reduced fat milk of any size
- Flavoured reduced fat milk less than 375mL
Amber
- Flavoured reduced fat milk greater than 375mL
- Fruit juice, greater than 99%, 250mL or less
Amber savoury commercial items, such as hot dogs, hash browns, chicken nuggets, pies and sausage rolls should not be available more than twice per week unless they form part of a balanced meal e.g. served with three salad items and a small piece of fruit.
Other amber items, such as small fruit juice, small fruit muffins and ice creams can be sold every day however, they need to be restricted in some way e.g. recess only; after lunch only.
No. Red foods are off the menu and are not permitted to be sold at all. Remember there is ample opportunity for children to eat these types of foods outside of school hours.
No. Jelly offers no nutritional value and cannot be sold in school canteens. Jelly, whether served with fruit, custard or on its own is classified as red.
If you are a Public school, you must comply with the Department of Education’s Student Health in Public Schools Policy (including Food and Drinks) which has been mandated for Public schools since 2007. All food and drinks classified as RED should be removed from the menu. Catholic Schools should also be compliant with the Catholic Education Office’s policy.
Rather than just tackling the menu and what is being sold from the canteen, we recommend that you start by developing a policy for the canteen, or by reviewing your policy if you already have one. If your school has a health committee, this could be a good project for the committee, but health coordinators, physical education teachers and school nurses are also often good allies for instigating change. By developing or reviewing the policy, it allows everyone within the school community to put forward their ideas and the issue of what the canteen sells will be discussed in a far less emotive manner A sample policy is available as an editable template.
There is no standard percentage you should add to menu items.
Like any business, your school canteen/food service must:
- Calculate all overheads (e.g. wages, superannuation, tax, insurance etc.)
- Know the cost of goods (e.g. what you pay for one bottle of water; what you pay for each ingredient in a recipe)
- And then you can calculate the gross profit percentage (or mark-up) using a formula. See the Finance resources for further information.
- Foodcore provide CORE Finances Training to increase knowledge, skills and confidence in financial management. See the training page for further details.