The Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS) School’s Initiative that helps to provide qualifications to 10,000 pupils every year, many in areas of high deprivation, is at risk after co-funding was withdrawn by Scotland’s public sector food body.
REHIS is a long-established awarding body in Scotland and has made its Elementary Food Hygiene course available to secondary schools since 1993 and Elementary Food and Health course since 2015. More than 300 schools in all areas of Scotland are registered with the Institute and have been delivering these REHIS qualifications, both of which are on the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) at level 5, to over 10,000 pupils each year.
As well as providing pupils with nationally, and industry recognised qualifications, which will be of use to them and future employers, the initiative is supporting the local economy and food businesses who are able to recruit young adults with a recognised qualification to work in the food sector. The courses play an important role in helping schools in Scotland meet the SQA Curriculum for Excellence, Health and Wellbeing (Food and Health) experiences and outcomes.
Following a recent survey of schools about the initiative, 120 schools responded. Feedback from teachers overwhelmingly say the qualifications are important to their young people in terms of understanding healthy eating, food safety but also in terms of gaining a formal qualification that can lead to employment. In particular, the fully funded initiative supports schools in areas of high deprivation to allow them to offer the qualifications.
One teacher said: “In my case, I was working with young people who were not able to access mainstream education so were already disadvantaged in terms of academic achievement. REHIS qualifications give them real currency in the job market given how recognisable the qualification is, so helped them transition into a positive destination.”
REHIS has worked in partnership with Food Standards Scotland to co-fund the initiative since 2007, enabling over 200,000 young people to gain skills and knowledge in food safety and food and health. The Institute said that it and the schools were appreciative to Food Standards Scotland for its past support of the hugely popular initiative.
REHIS continues to offer the qualifications to schools at a subsidised rate, however it is recognised that some schools do not have the funds to purchase the resources, which is unfortunately widening the attainment gap and inequalities in education. Since the announcement of the funding arrangements earlier this year, only 46 secondary schools have been in the position to purchase qualification packs, compared to 180 secondary schools at the same time when the project was fully funded.
For it to operate on a fully funded basis, the Institute is seeking another co-funding partner to provide this service free of charge to the schools, particularly to those schools in areas of high deprivation.
