The job of lunchtime supervisor at a Gwent school is not just about doling out mashed potato - it has an important role in the battle to keep children's attention in class and re-inforce good standards of behaviour, as CAIO IWAN found out.

ALTHOUGH the job title was described as a “lunchtime supervisor” by my photographer, let’s face it, I was a dinner lady for the day. But the experience was a surprisingly enjoyable one.

I was kindly welcomed by staff at the modern Nant Celyn Primary School in Cwmbran, which opened in September 2010, to see for myself how the school lunchtime process works.

I quickly realised the job was not to be taken lightly – it is a vital role within any school, and especially at primary level.

Having donned fetching purple overalls and a white apron, as well as a red baseball cap to complete a complementing, colour co-ordinated outfit, I began by washing my hands, just as every other person in the room was asked to do.

Prior to the arrival of the children, the tables in the modern canteen needed to be set up with plates and cutlery. Presentation is key as the children need to become accustomed to the correct way of using their knives and forks from a young age. It may seem irrelevant and trivial, but this, as well as sitting around the table to eat, is something that is very important to the school’s behaviour policy, as the head teacher later explains.

Belinda James, the school’s senior midday supervisor, co-ordinates the unenviable task of ensuring nearly 200 children are well fed every day of the week.

It is a frantic hour or so, although the children are extremely well-behaved.

The team caters for around 170 pupils and offers cold dinners, hot dinners, and sandwiches. I notice, and am later told, that the food is much healthier on the whole compared to what was on offer 10 or 15 years ago.

Infants are brought in to the canteen first, followed by the juniors.

One by one they came, in an orderly fashion it must be said, as I took down their names on the register and accepted their money before putting the coins in the till.

When that was done, and every child had either sat down with their food or were queuing to receive their share, I then tried my luck in the kitchen itself where the food’s temperature needed to be checked with a special thermometer before it was served to the expectant children. You can never be too safe with a corn beef pie.

A delicious set of food-filled trays were laid in front of me, as I began to load the children’s trays with carrots, peas, potatoes, the thoroughly-cooked pie, and some gravy to top it all off.

The children were very friendly and I took pride in serving them with their food and drink, which they were thankful for.

But for the women who are used to doing the job on a daily basis, what is the most rewarding aspect of their work?

Lianne Trinder, head cook at the school, said: “It’s nice to see that the children have a proper full meal. The best thing is that the children are trying different foods and are coming back for some more. We often put out little tasters for the children so that they can try different things.”

Desna Hollings, assistant cook, has been associated with the school – which was previously Hollybush Primary before it was knocked down – for 26 years. She still loves her job.

“It’s great interacting with the children”, she said. “The dieticians sort the menus out and then we prepare it and serve it from there. Some of the children come back from home saying they had eaten something they had first tried here at the school – that’s very rewarding for us.”

The children are not allowed to eat their pudding (which for today incidentally is a choice between an apple crumble and a chocolate brownie) until they have eaten an “acceptable” amount of their lunch. After all, a healthy body means a healthy mind.

Amanda Jones, head teacher at Nant Celyn, tells me that a full stomach increases concentration in the classroom. She emphasises the importance of the lunchtime meal.

Mrs Jones said: “Lunch is really important to us here – there’s a variety on offer to the children.

“The breakfast club intake has also gone up. We offer it for free to any children whose parents might want to drop them off before going into work and so on.”

At the moment, the school has a 29 per cent free school meals intake, but for those who pay for their food, Mrs Jones admits the process is a bit of a “nuisance”.

She added: “Children have to come in with £1.85 every day – they don’t do that anywhere else. The money could get lost or misplaced really easily, and it often happens.”

And what about my presence here – was I a nuisance?

“We want the children to be used to have people coming into the school, and that’s why we were so willing to welcome you here,” she added. “The children are polite and well-behaved and the end of year results, I must say, have been excellent. We have a strict behaviour policy here and the children react well to it.

“Eating around the table is an important part of that and it is something that is sadly becoming less and less common.”

I agree. The little habits these children pick up during meal time is important in their growing up, and I am proud to have played a tiny part in the process on this day.

But before it ended, there was the small matter of cleaning up. And however well-behaved and polite I said the children were, they sure were a messy bunch!