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Harnessing urban agriculture to supply the education system in Nottingham & Nottinghamshire
The workshop presented case studies and practices from local authorities, university catering and procurement teams, along with our own Edible Classrooms team members Xanthea and Bethan.
Xanthea gave case studies regarding the benefits and possibilities of food production and food literacy education within schools, including case studies of the schools that we work with and exemplary projects such as The Washingborough Academy in Lincolnshire, and Bean Meals.
Bethan shared her Farmstart research in collaboration with Urban Agriculture Consortium and Nottinghamshire County Council, posing the question who is growing food and how can we increase the production of local food (there isn’t much of this happening in Nottingham/shire!).
The event provided opportunities for stakeholders from different sectors to come together in focus groups, identifying current opportunities and challenges. From the event, a number of funding bids and research opportunities have developed including a further project we will be delivering this summer.
It is clear from discussions that took place within the workshop that a priority for both city and county is the development of dynamic procurement strategies. Dynamic procurement provides scope for small and local producers to provide their goods and services over that of larger national contractors.
9:00 Registration
9:30 Session 1: Opportunities and Challenges for Sustainable food procurement and provision in the local schools education system
- Lee Kimberley: Head of Sold Services to Schools, Nottingham City Council: Nottingham's approach to school food in a wider context, considering how some European cities have developed local procurement policies and programmes. Explaining how Nottingham procures food for the local education sector and discuss the constraints upon the current system. Lee will also address the potential for dynamic procurement, locally. He will end by discussing potential next steps and highlighting the importance of partnerships and collaborations in moving these agendas forward.
- Xanthea Heynes (Edible Classrooms):The role of edible classrooms and food literacy curriculums in building better local food systems, with examples from Nottingham, Lincolnshire, and Leicestershire.
- Bethan McIlroy (Urban Agriculture Consortium): Perspectives from the Urban Agricultural Consortium. An introduction to the Feasibility Study for FarmStarts on Local Food Production and Sustainable Supply Chains in Nottinghamshire.
10:45 - 11:15 Break
11:15 Session 2: Opportunities and Challenges for Sustainable food procurement and provision in the university system
- Chris Jarram, UoN (Associate Director Catering Services, Catering, Conferences and Hospitality) and Nicola Penn, UoN (Head of Business Performance, Catering, Conferences and Hospitality): Sustainable food Procurement Challenges (Nicola Penn); How sustainable procurement supports our catering strategy and what have we done (Chris Jarram).
- Ivan Hopkins, NTU, Head of Hospitality and Catering: Delivering a successful and sustainable HE food provision through constructive engagement and collaboration with organisational colleagues, local suppliers, and the wider community.
- (Online) Iain Wilkinson, University of Kent. Director of Study of Law, Society & Social Justice. The Right to Food University.
- Laura Mayhew-Manchón, NTU, Head of Sustainability: How food procurement, provision and consumption contribute to the wider sustainability outcomes of the education sector and beyond.
12:15 - 1:00 NTU School of Animal, Rural and Environmental Sciences, Brackenhurst Campus - Site Visit with Xanthea Heynes (Edible Classrooms, formerly NTU)
Tour of the shipping container vertical farms and walled garden.
1:00 - 3:00 Lunch and Focused small groups - brainstorm funding ideas
Brainstorming pilot project ideas focused on the role of urban agriculture in the food system for schools and universities in Nottingham, with an emphasis on food security and sustainable food systems.
3:00 Feedback and what next?
3:30 Close
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Edible Classrooms is a project of Honeybee Farmacy CIC, a Community Interest Company registered in England & Wales, Company no. 11688215. Registered office: Sneinton Market Unit 6, Suite 59, Gedling Street, Nottingham, NG1 1DS.