Celebrating National Nutrition Week: How one service turned meals into a community cookbook

In celebration of National Nutrition Week, the team at World of Learning Holland Park West came together with children and families to create something meaningful, a family cookbook featuring almost 20 recipes of meals children love, shared with their homes. 

Centre cook Rosemary Doyle, who has worked at the centre for more than seven years, said parents frequently asked for her recipes, so they developed a cookbook to meet that interest. Many children go home and rave to their parents about the food they’re given in the centre,

The initiative aligned with the theme for National Nutrition Week this year, ‘Love what you eat’. The centre used the theme to engage children meaningfully, asking what they liked and why, involving them in meal preparation, and encouraging healthy habits. 

Key take‑aways for early years services

• Involving children in cooking and grocery routines empowers them to try new foods,  “By getting children involved, they are more likely to try to eat it.”
• Hiding vegetables in meals (zucchini, pumpkin, spinach) can help encourage consumption of more nutritious options.
• Mealtimes can become learning opportunities: asking children what they want, observing what they eat and reflecting on why.
• Publishing a family‑friendly cookbook strengthens connections between home and early childhood service, and supports consistent nutrition messages.

Good nutrition in early childhood supports bone, brain and cognitive development; helps establish healthy eating habits; and contributes to immune resilience. By embedding these practices inside a service, educators help set children on positive learning and health trajectories. 

This is a practical reminder that quality early childhood services extend beyond pedagogy, they build partnerships with families, support wellbeing and foster belonging.

For the full article, including the recipes and insights from the team at Holland Park West, visit: World of Learning Holland Park West celebrates National Nutrition Week with family cookbook.