Mallacoota P-12 College has become the first school in Victoria to complete a newly launched breakfast club “bite” (action) as part of the Vic Kids Eat Well movement.
These new practical actions support nutritious school breakfast clubs, with the “bites” available to every school for free across the state.
Jennie Rush, Mallacoota P-12’s mental health and wellbeing
leader, led the Vic Kids Eat Well improvements with support from Andrea Kleehammer and Renate Hall at Gippsland Lakes Complete Health (GLCH).
They focused on simple changes to fuel students with delicious and nourishing options before they started school.
Miss Rush said fresh, locally grown fruit and veggies now feature in the school’s breakfast club thanks to community donations – including strawberries, cucumbers and homegrown plums.
“Our breakfast club is always busy with at least 20 students and two staff,” Ms Rush said.
“Secondary students pop in for toast or fruit, while others sit down and eat with friends. We’ve now added more fruit and veggies thanks to Vic Kids Eat Well and family donations.
“Our breakfast club is such a simple way to build relationships and celebrate local produce. Students
feel proud to bring something in
and share it.”
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Miss Rush said for students sometimes just one good first experience is all it takes for them to regularly enjoy a
new vegetable.
“I recently brought in a whole plate of homegrown cucumbers and sliced them up. A student said: ‘I’ve never tried cucumber before.’ He tasted it and said: ‘It’s like crunchy water!’ It was such a simple thing, but such a win. Now he’ll
eat cucumber if it’s on offer,” she said.
Dimity Gannon, head of healthy places at Cancer Council Victoria, commended the college on their progress.
“Congratulations to Mallacoota P-12 College for being the first in the state to
use Vic Kids Eat Well’s new breakfast club actions
as a springboard to add
more colour and crunch – not just at breakfast, but throughout students’ day,” Ms Gannon said.
To initiate change, Mallacoota P-12 formed a food and wellbeing team, including the assistant principal, mental health and wellbeing leader, staff from the breakfast club and school nurse – supported by GLCH.
“Together, we planned sustainable changes – including making healthy foods more visible to students and accessing local produce,” Miss Rush said.
School staff now also share chopped-up fruit and veggie platters during
yard duty and in the classroom – further boosting nutrition and connection with students.
“We started noticing some students didn’t have fruit during our morning fruit break. So we began taking items like apples, oranges and carrots from our breakfast club and placing them in bowls in classrooms. Now, students can refuel with nutritious options when they need to – helping with focus and learning,” she said.
Gippsland Lakes Complete Health enjoyed supporting Mallacoota P-12 College with their breakfast club swaps via Vic Kids Eat Well.
“For a small regional school without a canteen, Mallacoota P-12 is building a strong, inclusive and nutritious food culture for students,” Ms Kleehammer, health promotion officer at GLCH, said.
There’s a Vic Kids Eat Well “bite” (action) to suit every school in Victoria with a breakfast club. Schools get help to select nutritious and tasty breakfast club options for students. Whether it’s encouraging things like healthy hydration, fuelling with wholegrains or colouring breakfast with fruit
and veggies.
