Food Preparation and Nutrition lead

Karen Sowerbutts

I ask pupils to connect recipes with cost and nutrition, comparing ingredient choices and explaining trade-offs while practical preparation includes checked allergen and dietary information.

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A little about me

I lead Food Preparation and Nutrition and teach through to GCSE. Practical work needs careful planning for allergens and dietary needs, with information checked before pupils handle or eat food. That preparation lets the class focus on the cooking task and the decisions behind it.

I want pupils to connect a recipe with its cost and nutritional profile. Changing an ingredient can affect more than flavour, so a task might ask them to compare options and explain what they have traded off. That keeps practical work connected to subject knowledge.

I look for resources that make the brief, ingredients and evaluation criteria clear. A costing table or nutrition prompt can support discussion, but the teacher still needs to check ingredient information and suitability for the group. I value practical tasks that help pupils think through food choices as well as prepare a dish.

How I approach a lesson

Check ingredient and allergen information before practical work.
Connect recipe choices with cost and nutrition.
Ask pupils to explain the trade-offs in an adapted recipe.

Templates I'd use with my class

Explore these templates and decide what fits your own setting.

Design and technology

Culinary practical skill self-assessment

Reflect on practical cooking routines and skills, identify a next goal and notice change across six lessons.

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Design and technology

Plan a dish: ingredients, safety and timing

Pupils should produce a dish plan with quantities and units, required equipment, relevant allergy checks, ordered method steps and a workable timeline. They should halve and double the example amounts while recognising the stated whole-garlic-clove exception for two servings.

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Design and technology