The Judges

Jamie Oliver

Chef, cookbook writer and food campaigner who has encouraged millions of people to enjoy cooking fresh, delicious food from scratch over his 20-year+ career.

Joe Wicks

The fitness coach, TV presenter and social media star is on a mission to make the world fitter, healthier and happier.

Mary Berry

Legendary food writer, chef, baker and television presenter, who has decades of culinary expertise under her belt.

George Webster

The BAFTA-winning CBeebies presenter, actor and author has Down’s Syndrome, and wants to show the world that people with a learning disability can dream big and be very employable.

Big Has

This Fifteen graduate has gone on to have his own culinary success on YouTube and released his book Big Has Home in 2022.

Ellie Simmonds OBE

One of the world’s most celebrated Paralympians, Ellie is a true golden girl of British sport. She’s a five-time Paralympic champion, a BAFTA-winning documentary presenter, and was one of the youngest to ever receive an MBE, aged 14.

Jessie & Lennie Ware

The mum-and-daughter duo host the fantastic podcast Table Manners, all about food, family and the beautiful art of having a chat around the dinner table. Read more… Their guests have included Dolly Parton, Sir Paul McCartney, Robert De Niro and Cher. Jessie is also a pop powerhouse, with hits such as Free Yourself and Remember Where You Are. Show less

Lina Nielsen

British sprinter and hurdler Lina is an Olympic medallist, and health and wellness advocate living with MS. She’s also a yoga teacher and passionate chef, who is currently working on her debut cookbook.

Steph McGovern

Award-winning broadcaster Steph is known for her Channel 4 show Steph’s Packed Lunch, as well as many BBC shows, including Shop Well For Less. Read more… She’s been a financial journalist for many years, and co-hosts the podcast The Rest Is Money with Robert Peston. She’s also a mentor for young people in Teesside. Show less

Afua Hagan

A journalist, broadcaster and magazine editor, Afua is also a keynote speaker who is passionate about diversity, equality and inclusion. She’s particularly known for her TedX talk, Too Dark For Daytime TV.

Niamh McGrady

A film, stage and TV actress from Northern Ireland, Niamh is best known for her roles in Holby City, BBC thriller The Fall and Hope Street.

The Cast of Matilda The Musical

The Royal Shakespeare Company’s multi-award winning musical, inspired by the beloved book by Roald Dahl about an extraordinary little girl who dares to take a stand and change her own destiny, is the 15th longest running production in West End history.

Anthony Field & Tsehay Hawkins of the Wiggles

Anthony is the founder of the hugely successful children’s entertainment group and is best known as his alter-ego, Blue Wiggle. Tsehay joined The Wiggles in 2021 as the Yellow Wiggle and has quickly become a fan favourite, bringing her vibrant energy and dazzling dance moves to the beloved Australian group.

Dr Punam Krishan

Dr Punam is a practising NHS GP and media medic based in Scotland. She’s currently a resident GP on BBC Morning Live. She’s also written two children’s books, ‘How To Be A Doctor & Other Life-Saving Jobs’ and ‘You and Your Body’.

AND WE HAVE AN EXPERT PANEL OF ADVISERS…

We’re very proud to have some of the most amazing experts in the business helping us to shortlist these awards. School food is their bread and butter and they know exactly what to look for.

Stephanie Slater, one of our expert panel

Stephanie Slater, Chair of Good School Food Awards

As Founder and Chief Executive of School Food Matters, we’ve been working alongside Stephanie for 15 years and are constantly inspired by her enthusiasm, creativity and depth of knowledge.

Steve Chalke - founder of the Oasis Trust

Steve Chalke MBE

Steve founded the Oasis Trust, which provides housing, education and healthcare, among other things, for those affected by inequality. He is now working with the Ministry of Justice to create the UK’s first Secure School.

Lee Connelly

Lee is the UK’s leading children’s gardening educator. His commitment to teaching the next generation of green thumbs saw him set up School Gardening Success, which is dedicated to bringing horticulture into primary schools.

Dr Nikita Kanani MBE

Dr Nikita is a trailblazing NHS leader, GP and Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer at Aneira Health, where she drives transformative care in women’s health. Read more… With over two decades of experience, including leading the NHS Covid Vaccination Programme, she’s passionate about reducing health inequalities and advocating for inclusion. Show less

Henry Dimbleby

Henry co-authored The School Food Plan in 2013, a blueprint for government that set out actions to transform what children eat in schools and how they learn about food. He also co-founded the Leon restaurant chain, and the charity Chefs in Schools.

Jenny Rosborough

What Jenny Rosborough doesn’t know about nutrition isn’t worth knowing! We’re very lucky to have her as Head of Nutrition at Jamie Oliver HQ, bringing her expertise and fierce passion for kids’ health to the cause.

Brad Pearce

Brad runs CATERed, a school food cooperative that provides fresh, hot lunches to 70 schools across Plymouth and the surrounding area. He’s also the National Vice Chair Elect for LACA, the school food people, which serves around 3 million lunches in 27,000 schools every day!

Nicole Pisani

Nicole Pisani was head chef at top London restaurant Nopi, but now you’ll find her in a school kitchen. Read more… She co-founded Chefs in Schools to replicate this recipe for success. We’re so glad she’s using her talents to feed kids well. Show less

Marc Thompson

Marc Thompson is the Headteacher at Mandeville Primary School, part of the LEAP federation in Hackney, East London. Marc is passionate about ensuring all children have access to free, high quality, nourishing school meals and is committed to embedding sustainable food education in the curriculum.

Rob Percival

Rob Percival has more than a decade of school food policy expertise under his belt. Now he heads up food policy at The Soil Association.

Dr Nicholas Capstick OBE

Nicholas has looked after a lot of schools in his time as CEO of the White Horse Federation multi-academy trust. Read more… He may be technically retired, but luckily for us he’s showing no sign of slowing down his campaigning to make sure all pupils are fed well, no matter where they live. Show less

Kemi Akinola

Kemi is a trustee, governor, director, and Deputy Leader for Wandsworth Council. Her work with Be Enriched and Brixton People’s Kitchen takes local action to the next level – she’s truly inspiring!

Jacqueline Farrell

As Education Director at The Prince’s Foundation, Jacqueline’s remit is driven by the vision of charity founder HM King Charles III – creating communities for a more sustainable world. Her role involves overseeing education and training in multiple curriculum areas.

Myles Bremner

Myles heads up Bremner & Co, a company that works with international and local governments, not-for-profit and charitable organisations, academics and schools, all with the aim of making our food system fairer and better. Read more… He’s the oracle of school food. There isn’t a single fact or figure that he doesn’t know – we’ve tested him, a lot, and he hasn’t cracked yet! Show less

Neil Leitch

Neil came out of retirement to become the CEO of the Early Years Alliance, to give a louder voice to those who are caring for and educating young children. We can’t wait to see what he makes of the Early Years Award entries…

Jenny Elms

Jenny has more than 30 years’ experience in food education. She worked as a food teacher for 20 years, and creates brilliant resources to inspire young people with a love of cooking.

Anita Brown

Anita is the National Chair for LACA, which represents the caterers who provide 80% of school food across England and Wales. This amazing workforce serves up around 3 million lunches in 27,000 schools every day!

Kay Batkin

As Network Director at the Youth Sport Trust, Kay champions lifelong physical activity for all young people. Through her leadership, she emphasises the charity’s values of physical health in wellbeing and education’s role in equipping youth, drawing from her childhood enriched by sport and play.

Russ Ball

Our 2024 Rising Star, Russ is a chef with over 20 years of professional experience. He’s now running the kitchen at Pokesdown Community Primary School in Bournemouth, where he cooks 350 fresh meals every day for the students, who love his wholesome, inventive dishes. Read more… His great work has ensured he’s a finalist for this year’s All Party Parliamentary Group for School Food individual category award. Show less

Naomi Parkinson

The headteacher at Ingol Primary School in Preston, Naomi is passionate about ensuring children receive nutritious, sustainable food at school and beyond. Having been our 2024 Kindness & Community Award winner, she knows exactly what it takes to deliver good food to our kids and support those in the community who need it most.

Jen Craven

Jen makes a difference not only in schools but also the local community. She works with the kids in school to encourage them to eat a healthy diet, teaches the parents how to cook, and holds a summer holiday club all about healthy eating and exercise. This is why she’s 2024’s Food For Fuel award winner for her work at Ysgol Trefonnen Primary, Powys.

Sarah Read

Business director at North Ridge Sixth Form Hub in Manchester.

Natalie Hackett

Natalie is the inspiring headteacher at New Lubbesthorpe Primary School in Leicestershire, who’s created a brilliant school set-up, complete with working garden, beehives and chickens, with a local market stall in the works – it’s the definition of a community hub. She’s our 2024 School Leader Food Hero.

Michelle Woodard

2024’s Food Educator Of The Year, Michelle is a teacher at The King Edmund School in Rochford. She’s determined to be the positive role model in the classroom that she wishes she’d had growing up – and it’s making a difference. Read more… She’s inspired so many students to take Food as a GCSE and is looking to expand the offering at the school. Show less

Hugo Alho

Heading up the catering team at Reach Academy Feltham, Chef Hugo (executive chef of JPL Catering) is a legend in his school. He and his team – who won our 2024 Catering Team Of The Year – serve up delicious fresh lunches for the whole school, which spans all ages from two to 18. Read more… Taking all that he learnt from professional kitchens and applying it to the school canteen, he’s a model for success. Show less

Beth Bradshaw

Beth is a Registered Associate Nutritionist with the Association for Nutrition, and is the Food Active Policy Advocacy Manager at the Health Equalities Group, a public health charity. Read more… She also works with schools in the North West to help make their environments a healthier place for pupils, staff and parents. Show less

Leigh Powell

Leigh is UNISON’s national officer for education/further education, representing the views of thousands of catering workers in schools and colleges who are in negotiations with their employers and the government.

THE YOUTH BOARD

At the end of the day, these awards are all about the kids – so of course we wanted some young people to join our expert panel this year! We’re beyond excited to introduce these wonderful students from schools across the country. They might just be our toughest critics yet…

Madie Toplass

Madie won our 2024 Youth Activist Of The Year

Ingol Primary School Students, Preston

Malek, Lilly, Bryan, William and Ayo

King Edmund School Students, Essex

Oliver, Hailey and Cassie

Pokesdown Community Primary Students, Bournemouth

Dahlia and Woody