A third of kids are missing out on cookery lessons. The Flora ‛Cooking with Schools' initiative is on a mission to get kids cooking.

23rd June 2009: Research carried out by the makers of Flora has revealed that one third (33%) of school children aged 7-12 years across the UK said that they never have cookery lessons, despite cookery being part of the national curriculum for those in primary education. Almost half (46%) of the children questioned said that they don't have enough cooking equipment available to allow the whole class to take part in lessons.

Over three quarters (84%) of the children questioned reported that they would like to have more cookery lessons in their school. To help, the Flora team is building on last year's successful launch of Cooking with Schools, which helps to put healthy eating at the heart of the classroom by offering FREE cooking equipment to primary schools across the UK and Ireland, plus providing teachers with comprehensive resource and support packs.

The message is getting through: Almost half (41%) of children surveyed think cooking lessons will help them look after themselves in later life, while 29% want to learn to cook so they can make healthy meals at home, showing that children are learning the importance of a balanced diet both at school and home.

Battle of the sexes: One in four (24%) of all children surveyed ranked cookery as their favourite lesson and of these, 70% were girls, compared with only 30% of boys.

Creativity in the kitchen: According to the results, it appears teachers are encouraging pupils to be more inventive in their cookery classes, with almost one quarter (21%) of children saying that they had learnt how to make a delicious new dish in their last lesson.

One of the many schools that the Flora team helped in 2008 was Cottesbrooke Junior School in Birmingham, which received a whole range of cooking equipment for its pupils.

"We were absolutely thrilled with our Cooking with Schools delivery," said Jayne Barber, Business Manager at Cottesbrooke. "In the past we have really struggled with our limited resources and some of the teachers have even brought in their own bowls and spatulas from home. Being so well set up for cooking lessons now, we have set up a weekly after school healthy eating cook club, which has proved to be very popular."

Flora is committed to making the nation's hearts healthier by helping to reduce current overconsumption of saturated fat. By switching from butter to Flora spreads, we could reduce our intake of saturated fat significantly to help meet the Government's recommended daily allowance, and help the nation live healthier for longer.

To register tokens from Flora packs for your child's school go to www.cookingwithschools.com