Schools urged to ditch unhealthy rewards

Primary school pupils from Bowlee Park Community Primary School select a reward.

NHS Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale is working on a new scheme to help schools replace unhealthy treats with more healthy rewards.

Reward boxes filled with toys, stationery and non-food goodies are available to every primary school which signs up to the “rewards in schools” initiative.

So far 36 schools have signed up to the scheme and received their boxes but around 40 primary schools are yet to make the pledge.

The trust carried out a survey of the borough’s schools and found that whilst schools tend to provide toys or stationery as rewards for good work, 87% still allow parents to send in sugary treats and sweets to celebrate their child’s birthday.

“Whilst this might not seem like a large amount of confectionery, with around 35 children per class, it soon mounts up,” said Uriana Boye, senior dental officer at NHS Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale.

“The reality is that at age five, children living in the Rochdale Borough have had an average of 2.5 teeth removed or affected in some way by tooth decay. If we start to educate our children not to eat too many sweets at a young age, we’ll have a better chance of improving their oral health.”