Read the latest school food blogs, including Irene Carroll, Former Chair of LACA as she talks about healthy school lunches and the build up to the week.

Check out the National School Meals Week Twitter feed: http://twitter.com/nsmw

It has also been integrated on the left hand side of every page. So as you move around the site you can see the most up to date news, as it happens.

If you are wondering ‘what is Twitter, tweeting and micro blogging?' then sign-up to one of the free webinars on digital marketing. All you have to do now is register for the session you want to join. Nearer the time, you will receive an email with a link to the interactive session and a telephone number to call. It really is easy!

We have some authorities leading the way with their own Twitter pages, take a look at Tower Hamlets who are tweeting away: http://twitter.com/LBTHCatering

If you tweet then drop us a line @nsmw or twitter.com/nsmw, we would love to follow your tweets.

See you all soon
NSMW Girls

The numbers of authorities and schools taking part in National School Meals Week (NSMW) are growing every day, we only launched the site two weeks ago and already have 37 authorities/DIY schools signed up. There are lots of advantages to registering and saying you are taking part in National School Meals Week. You get access to all sorts of tools to help you prepare for the event. Why not start by following this link and seeing who has signed up in your area.
http://www.iloveschoolmeals.co.uk/Media/Who-is-Taking-Part/

You can register for the week from the Home Page of www.iloveschoolmeals.co.uk. You will then have access to the following:

• Downloads - such as posters, letters, planning documents and a How to Guide are all available to download from the site now. Over the coming months more and more tools will be made available to help you prepare for the week.
• Webinars - you can sign-up to free webinars to find out more about the week and to listen to an introduction to digital marketing. The webinars are run by Arnold and Karen Fewell and are a great opportunity for you to pick their marketing brains!
• Interact with others - share your ideas and plans for the week and help each other make this an amazing National School Meals Week.

If you haven't already, make sure you ‘Get Involved'.

Well were are back from the LACA conference and so pleased with the interest in National School Meals Week.

We wondered what Arnold was doing when he ordered us sashes to wear, but I have to admit he was right - they did grab everyone's attention. Whether we were wandering around the exhibition, ordering refreshments from the bar or stood on our NSMW stand we were being asked about National School Meals Week.

The designers did a great job and the stand looked great! I think they thought we were going overboard when we went clothes shopping to ensure we were dressed in the NSMW brand colours - but everything on our stand represented the new National School Meals Week brand and added to the impact.

The feedback we had at the conference, and are still receiving now is brilliant. So many people are excited about taking part in a digital marketing campaign. We have had some fantastic comments as authorities and schools register on the website and we will share these with you in another blog.

The guides to organising National School Meals Week were sought after, people were always coming to us asking for their own copy of the booklet. If you did not manage to collect your own, register for the week and download it from the website.

Thanks for making us both feel so welcome at the conference. We are glad you like the new look NSMW and are really excited about getting ready for the actual week. We have all sorts planned, including:

• spending time with teenagers to plan the NSMW social networking activity
• working with our fitness specialist to get ready for filming Colin Jackson
• researching what children want to learn about cooking, in preparation for the Get Cooking day

Come back soon and read our updates on how preparations for the big week are going.

Karen and Nicola, known as the NSMW girls at the LACA conference

I am thrilled that Colin Jackson CBE will be launching National School Meals Week on the 9th November. This was announced today at the LACA AGM. Colin is a fantastic role model for everyone. He was a World Champion at the 110 metres hurdles, he did very well in "Strictly Come Dancing" and has appeared in the genealogical programme "Who do you think you are". He also regularly commentates on athletics for the BBC. He will be well known to parents and teachers and he will be an excellent role model for students. Make sure you see how you can include him in your plans.

I must stress that we want people to take part. That does not necessarily mean doing everything in the "How to" booklet. You can pick and choose the ideas or do your own. It is up to you. But please share the work out with your team as I know this will reap the benefits in more meals served.

It doesn't seem like a year ago we were all assembling in Birmingham for the LACA Conference. But it is!

The conference is a great time to meet up with friends old and new, catch up with the gossip and hear more about the latest challenges facing school caterers. They never go away and change is always around us. But that is part of the job and what makes it so fascinating to be part of the school catering industry.

It is also an important time for National School Meals Week as Arnold and Karen Fewell unveil the latest version of the website with much more information about the week. They are making a presentation to LACA members at the AGM on Wednesday 8th. I hope you will be there. It will soon be live so bookmark this page and come back soon to register that you are taking part.

If you can't get there the PowerPoint of the presentation will be on this website so you can download it easily. Why not share it with your team. You can also download the booklet called "How to organise National School Meals Week" and an A3 planning tool for your team. These are great resources so please use them. The web address is www.iloveschoolmeals.co.uk.

Well I had a great holiday but it was quickly back into National School Meals Week. Lots to read about and make sure I was happy with everything - and I was. I heard that Karen Fewell has just made a great presentation in Derbyshire to the Eastern Region of LACA. Her presentation went down very well and the audience was delighted to hear about how the plans for National School Meals Week were going. Arnold and Karen have said they are happy to attend other LACA regions if that is helpful. That sounds like a good idea to me. Why not email them at nsmw@avfmarketing.co.uk.

However, Arnold and Karen will be joined by Nicola Proud at the conference. Nicola is Arnold's middle daughter. You will recognise them as they are wearing sashes saying "Ask me about NSMW". So please do. They have a stand and they are happy to talk to you about both NSMW and how we are moving towards a digital marketing age. I find the transition fascinating.