Camps: Ofsted Safer Eating Requirements

Your child’s safety is at the heart of everything we do at The Little Gym — and that includes what happens at lunchtime. As part of our commitment to keeping every child safe, we follow Ofsted’s Safer Eating requirements at all of our holiday camps. Here’s what they mean, why they matter, and what we ask of parents.

What are the Safer Eating guidelines?

Safer Eating requirements came into force as part of the updated Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) framework on 1st September 2025. They set out clear rules for how food should be prepared and served to young children, to reduce the risk of choking — one of the most serious and preventable dangers at mealtimes.

The change followed the tragic death of a child who choked on incorrectly prepared food at an early years setting. His family campaigned for clearer, stronger rules. As a result, safer food preparation, active supervision and paediatric first aid cover at mealtimes are now legal requirements for all early years providers, rather than simply best practice.

What age groups does this apply to?

These requirements apply specifically to children aged five and under. This age group is most at risk of choking, as their airways are smaller and their chewing skills are still developing.

What does Ofsted “safer eating” actually look like in practice at The Little Gym Godalming?

The guidelines cover things like:

• Cutting small round foods (e.g. grapes, cherry tomatoes, cherries, strawberries, large blueberries, etc) into quarters, not halves
• Slicing hard fruits and vegetables longways (e.g. apple, cucumber, nectarine, carrot, etc) rather than serving them in chunks
• Cutting sausages, hot dogs, Pepperami, etc, into quarters lengthways
• Removing bones from meat or fish
• Cutting cheese into strips rather than cubes or chunks
• Cutting commercial cheese sticks (e.g. Cheese Strings) into quarters lengthways

What we ask of parents

If your child is aged five or under and attending one of our camps, we ask that any packed lunch or snacks are already prepared in line with these guidelines before they arrive — for example, grapes pre-quartered and hard fruit pre-sliced. This helps our teachers be compliant with Ofsted’s guidance and keep your child safe.

Full guidance on the Safer Eating Requirements is included in your Camp Confirmation email, so you’ll know exactly what to check before you pack their lunchbox.

What happens if food isn’t prepared correctly?

Our teachers are not able to serve food to children aged five and under if it doesn’t meet the Safer Eating guidelines in its current form. For example, whole or halved grapes, chunks of fruit, unsliced sausages/Pepperami/cheese sticks, etc. Where this happens, our team have to cut or slice the food to the correct size before serving it to your child, so that they do not miss their meal.

Because this requires additional preparation time from our teachers and removes them from ensuring that the children in their care are learning, engaged, happy and safe, a £5 per day kitchen fee applies if we need to cut your child’s food. This fee will be charged automatically to the card held on your child’s account.

Why we take this so seriously

Choking can happen silently and quickly, which is why prevention matters so much more than reaction. By preparing food correctly from the outset, we can help make sure every child at camp eats safely, happily, and without worry — giving you the peace-of-mind that your child is being taken care of in camp.

We charge a kitchen fee because if our teachers are required to chop your child’s food, they are taken away from their critical role as teachers — ensuring all children are learning, safe, happy and engaged in camps.

If you have any questions about the Safer Eating guidelines or how they apply to your child, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with your local gym team.