Who can Join the Vic Kids Eat Well Movement?
Who can participate in Vic Kids Eat Well?
Vic Kids Eat Well supports the places school aged kids and their families spend their time. This includes:
Schools
Primary, secondary, combined and specialist schools.
If the school has a food environment or fundraising, they can join Vic Kids Eat Well and start working through the bites.
If a school has previously made healthy changes, they can join Vic Kids Eat Well and celebrate their previous hard work with our advanced standing pack.
If a school does not have a food environment (canteen, lunch orders or have fundraising) they can still join Vic Kids Eat Well and promote the movement using our supporter pack.
Outside School Hours Care
Outside School Hours Care and holiday programs can participate in Vic Kids Eat Well if they provide food to school aged children and young people aged 5 -18 years.
Sports Clubs
Sports clubs can participate in Vic Kids Eat Well if they provide food and/or drinks or have food/drink-based marketing or fundraising and cater to children and young people aged 5 -18 years.
Community and Council owned facilities
Community and Council owned facilities can participate in Vic Kids Eat Well if they provide food and/or drinks or have food/drink-based marketing or fundraising and cater to children and young people aged 5 -18 years.
Sport and Recreation facilities
Vic Kids Eat Well can support sport and recreation facilities as they work towards the Healthy Choices Guidelines. Sport and Recreation facilities can participate in Vic Kids Eat Well if they provide food and/or drinks or have food/drink-based marketing or fundraising and cater to children and young people aged 5 -18 years
Can early childhood facilities participate?
Early childhood facilities are not eligible to participate in Vic Kids Eat Well. Vic Kids Eat Well supports the places school aged kids and their families spend their time. If you are an early childhood facility you are eligible to participate in the Achievement Program.
Can my organisation still participate if we don’t have a canteen?
If you do not have a canteen, you are still eligible to participate in Vic Kids Eat Well if you provide food and/or drinks or have food/drink-based marketing or fundraising.
If your organisation is not eligible to participate in Vic Kids Eat Well, you can request our supporter pack to show your wider community that you support the Vic Kids Eat Well movement in your community.
What if I have already completed all the bites?
If you have already achieved all the Vic Kids Eat Well bites, you may be eligible for Advanced Standing! All you need to do is register and complete our baseline audit with your Health Promoter. Once completed, you will be sent the Advanced Standing toolkit which includes a personalised poster, social media tiles and suggested newsletter content which can be used to celebrate your commitment to healthy eating.
What’s the deal with ‘bites’?
What is a ‘bite’?
Vic Kids Eat Well provides organisations with clear, simple and achievable steps to making healthy food and drink options available for kids. We call these steps ‘small bites’ and ‘big bites’. Click here to view the bites for your organisation.
How do I choose which bite to focus on? Should I complete the bites in a particular order?
Once you have registered with Vic Kids Eat Well your Health Promoter will complete a baseline tool with you that will identify key areas for improvement. You will then be able to choose which actions your organisation wishes to work towards.
Do the bites vary for each organisation type?
The Vic Kids Eat Well bites were designed to be specific and relevant to the organisation type.
The Vic Kids Eat Well bites align to the Achievement Program Healthy Eating Benchmarks and to healthy eating policies and guidelines including the Healthy Choices Guidelines, Department of Education and Training’s Canteens, Healthy Eating and Other Food Services Policy and the healthy eating requirements of the National Quality Standard, Quality Area 2 - Children’s Health and Safety.
Is there a time limit for completing each bite?
There are no time limits on completing the Vic Kids Eat Well bites.
What rewards are available after we complete a bite?
Please see the rewards store.
How does this Fit with the Achievement Program and Healthy eating Advisory Service?
How does Vic Kids Eat Well fit in with our work on the Achievement Program?
Vic Kids Eat Well is delivered by the Achievement Program in partnership with the Healthy Eating Advisory Service. Vic Kids Eat Well breaks down the Achievement Program healthy eating benchmarks into smaller and more achievable bite size changes.
The Vic Kids Eat Well bites align to the Achievement Program Healthy Eating benchmarks so that eligible organisations know they are working towards Victorian Government Recognition as well as Vic Kids Eat Well rewards.
If your organisation has achieved the healthy eating benchmarks in the Achievement Program you are still able to support the Vic Kids Eat Well movement. All you need to do is register with Vic Kids Eat Well and talk to your Health Promoter about applying for Advanced Standing.
If a school completes all large bite, will they qualify for automatic recognition in the Achievement Program?
Vic Kids Eat Well does not provide automatic recognition for the Healthy Eating and Oral Health priority area of the Achievement Program as there are additional changes that need to be made across the organisation such as specific policy requirements. The Vic Kids Eat Well bites align to the Achievement Program Healthy Eating Healthy Environment Benchmarks and provide smaller milestones to help keep the momentum going.
How does Vic Kids Eat Well fit in with our work with the Healthy Eating Advisory Service (HEAS)?
Vic Kids Eat Well is delivered by the Achievement Program in partnership with the Healthy Eating Advisory Service.
The Vic Kids Eat Well bites align to healthy eating policies and guidelines including the Healthy Choices Guidelines, Department of Education and Training’s Canteens, Healthy Eating and Other Food Services and the healthy eating requirements of the National Quality Standard, Quality Area 2 - Children’s Health and Safety.
If your organisation has previously worked with the Healthy Eating Advisory Service, you can still join the Vic Kids Eat Well movement. Your organisation may still have healthy food and drink changes that can be made, or you may even be eligible for Advanced Standing!
Why Should I join the Vic Kids Eat Well Movement?
Why should I join Vic Kids Eat Well?
Unsure whether Vic Kids Eat Well is something you’d like to get involved with? Check out this blog post which breaks down the five reasons your organisation should join the movement!
What about our canteen profits?
Healthy canteens CAN be profitable canteens! It’s often thought that introducing healthier items will affect your canteen’s bottom line. We are here to tell you this is not the case! With a bit of creative marketing and savvy shopping, incorporating healthy food and drink options into your canteen can make financial sense. Check out our ‘Maintaining a Healthy and Profitable Canteen’ resource on the resources page.