Our research on Flavour School outcomes

Research is currently our core focus at Flavour School. We need to understand how children respond to Flavour School, how usable the programme is for teachers and schools, and how we can develop and improve the programme. This data is also essential for educators and policy makers to make informed decisions on the value of teaching Flavour School in their settings.

We have worked with the School of Food Science and Nutrition, at the University of Leeds, to run a ‘randomised control trial’ (the clinical gold standard trial design), testing the outcomes of the programme in schools in Leeds and London. This project started in October 2018, and is funded by the EU H2020 science programme.

For the research project, schools teach the Flavour School programme to children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2, over the course of a school term. It’s really important to us to look at real live behaviour, in a comfortable and fun setting, to see how children are responding to Flavour School. So before and after this teaching, children take part in a ‘Taste Explorers’ activity, where they can (but don’t have to) taste a range of 9 veggies and fruits, and rate them for yumminess (or yukkiness!). This activity is video recorded, so that we can look at how much the children are participating and enjoying themselves, as well as how many different things they choose to taste. We are using a range of measures to assess the effects of Flavour School on children’s confidence and curiosity in exploring foods and flavours.

Following piloting, participating schools started Flavour School teaching from autumn 2019. Things were running along nicely, but unfortunately, the coronavirus pandemic severely disrupted this trial, so we started up again in the 2020-21 school year, and ultimately finished the trials and research analysis in October 2022. We are in the process of writing up the findings. Please contact n.wilkinson@flavourschool.org.uk if you are interested in the research approach and insights.