Two smiling young children with both their hands in the air sitting at a table with plates of food.

Food they love. A partner they trust.

Every school is different. That’s why we work with you to create a meal service that fits your pupils and your school, with delicious, nutritious food they can enjoy every day.

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Why choose us

School food partners that go beyond service.

We are one of Europe’s largest school caterers. With over 65 years’ experience, we leave nothing to chance when it comes to giving pupils, tasty, nutritious and safe meals. But that’s just part of the story. Because, as your partner we’ll help educate your pupils and their parents with tastings, workshops and themed days that are proven to boost understanding and meal uptake.

Nutritionally balanced meals for all.

Thanks to our chefs and dietitians, none of your pupils will ever feel left out at mealtimes. Their expertise and experience craft meals that cater for every dietary and cultural need.

A hybrid approach that adapts to you.

We tailor our service to your unique requirements, that blends the best of inhouse and contract catering.

Increased efficiencies and meal uptake.

Whether you are a Multi-Academy Trust, Independent or SEND school, we can help. We’ll deliver tangible cost savings and deliver increased meal uptake.

How our service works

We cater for every style of school.

Two smiling schoolchildren in uniform eating lunch at a canteen table.
Multi-Academy Trusts

Delivering consistently at scale

Manage multiple schools with confidence. We’ll help you reduce costs, simplify operations and deliver consistently high-quality meals for all your pupils.

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Girl in school uniform smiling
Independent schools

Food that reflects your high standards

With tailored menus offering exceptional quality and dedicated support for your catering teams, we create dining experiences that enhance and elevate your school’s reputation.

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Young girl jumping and playing on an outdoor playground
SEND schools

Manage pupils’ mealtimes with total confidence

Our expertly crafted meals meet the widest range of dietary requirements. From allergies to texture needs, all your pupils will enjoy safe, nutritious and inclusive mealtimes.

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Multi-Academy Trusts.

We appreciate the budgetary and staff cost pressures you face. That’s why our approach gives you more control and consistency around school meals, so you can look forward to lower costs, higher meal uptake and happier children at mealtimes.

The benefits

  • Over 150 delicious and nutritious meals

  • Trusts typically save 20% on cost

  • Consistent quality standards

  • Reduced operational admin

Schoolboy covering his mouth while laughing at lunch
School kitchen staff serving lunch to a line of pupils

Making a difference to over 30,000 pupils every day.

Exceptional quality in every serving.

We flash freeze every meal within an hour of cooking. This locks in maximum nutrition and flavour.

Meals for every requirement.

Our menus address all cultural, dietary and allergen needs.

Delivering measurable results.

Typically, you can see costs reduced by 20%. You’ll need 50% less staff and food waste is generally reduced by 65%.

Callum Richards

Executive Headteacher, Carleton Rode & Forncett St Peter CEVA Primary Federation

“The transition to using apetito for our school lunches has been remarkably smooth, thanks to the excellent support and professionalism of their staff. The meals are noticeably more nutritious and of significantly higher quality than before, with exciting potential to expand the menu and offer even greater variety to suit all pupils' tastes.”

Independent Schools.

We can help balance the new economic challenges you face with the requirement to offer pupils the highest levels of quality at mealtimes. As your partner we’ll ensure the meals you serve meet and enhance your school’s high standards.

The benefits

  • Over 150 premium quality, nutritious meals

  • All dishes developed by our expert chefs and dietitians

  • Mission Nutrition, our free, curriculum-linked initiative teaches pupils about healthy eating

  • Typically reduces operational costs by 20%

Schoolchildren in uniform sitting at lunch tables in a school hall, seen from behind.
Two young school children eating plates of pasta with tomato sauce at a table against a green background.

We go further for your pupils and schools.

Exceptional quality in every serving.

We flash freeze every meal within an hour of cooking. This locks in maximum nutrition, flavour and provides greater assurances around safety.

Meals that offer peace of mind.

No pupil or their parent should ever have to worry about school mealtimes. That’s why every one of our meals is tested to be pathogen and allergen free before sale. For further peace of mind, we hold the highest BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety accreditation.

Delivering measurable results.

Typically, costs reduce by 20% and meal uptake increases.

Louise Hinton

Headteacher, St Mark’s CofE Primary School

“Moving to apetito has given us control of our menu and removed reliance on individual chef skills in the kitchen. Wastage is down and the kids are all talking about how much nicer the food is. The support from the apetito team before and after supplying our school meals has been second to none. I could not recommend apetito highly enough.”

SEND Schools.

We go further than other traditional school caterers. From day one, our hands-on expert support will do the hard work for you. So, you can focus more of your efforts on your pupils.

The benefits

  • Over 150 consistently safe, delicious and nutritious meals

  • Meals for all specialist dietary and cultural requirements

  • Ongoing support for staff and pupils

  • Reduced staffing pressures and labour requirements

Schoolgirl choosing her lunch at a serving counter, with an apetito staff member holding a meal tray.
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apetito staff serving school lunches to pupils at a serving counter.

Exceptional quality in every serving.

We flash freeze every meal within an hour of cooking. This locks in maximum nutrition and flavour and enables us to run more safety tests on every meal.

Peace of mind with every meal.

Every meal is tested to be pathogen free before release. We maintain the highest BRCGS Global Standard for Food Safety accreditation.

Delivering measurable results.

20% reduction in operating costs and increases in meal uptake.

Simon Hawthorne

Headteacher, Ropemakers Academy

“Since we introduced apetito, there has been a significant improvement in the food we’ve serving…The better the food, the happier we find our pupils are and we’ve noticed a lot more positive behaviour since partnering with apetito. We have a lot more flexibility and control than we would have with a contract caterer. Lots of our pupils are particular about certain textures and flavours, apetito gives us the ability to cater for pupils’ individual dietary needs extremely easily.”

The proof isn't just in the pudding.

Read what our partners say about us.

“The transition to apetito has been remarkably smooth. Meals are more nutritious and of higher quality, with potential to expand the menu to suit all tastes.”

Callum Richards

Executive Headteacher, Carleton Rode & Forncett St Peter CEVA Primary Federation

“There has been a significant improvement in the quality of the food. The better the food, the happier our pupils. We’ve noticed more positive behaviours. We have more flexibility and control than with a contract caterer. This is a massive benefit because lots of our pupils are particular about certain textures and flavours.”

Simon Hawthorne

Headteacher, Ropemakers Academy

“Moving to apetito has given us control of our menu. Wastage is down and the kids are all talking about how much nicer the food is. The support from apetito has been second to none. They have been brilliant.”

Louise Hinton

Headteacher, St Mark’s CofE Primary School

Read all case studies

Take the first step today

Book a free, no-obligation discussion with our team today.