The school meals revolution set in motion by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has already run into difficulties as long-term contracts with private companies prevent schools getting rid of junk food.

The Guardian has learned that new schools locked into 25-year contracts through private finance initiatives are finding that they cannot rid their menus of junk food despite the government’s pledge.

Other schools are also running into problems as they discover that they face substantial financial penalties if they try to opt out of long-running contracts with private catering companies.

The poor standard of many school meals and their detrimental effect on children’s behaviour was exposed last month by Oliver’s TV series.

The government responded to the public outcry that followed by rushing out an announcement this month promising to impose new nutritional standards on caterers and improve all children’s school meals.

But the practical difficulties of forcing change on private contractors appear to have been underestimated.

Continues at: [education.guardian.co.uk]