“Not just students in need”: Findings from a nominal group technique study of what parents want in an Australian school-provided meal system
Objective: Interest in national adoption of school-provided meals is growing across Australia; however, parent perspectives are not well understood. This study aimed to understand the most important features of a potential school-provided meal system to parents of primary school children in Australi...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2025-04-01
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| Series: | Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health |
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| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1326020025000020 |
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| author | Alexandra C. Manson Rebecca K. Golley Dimity C. Dutch Brittany J. Johnson |
| author_facet | Alexandra C. Manson Rebecca K. Golley Dimity C. Dutch Brittany J. Johnson |
| author_sort | Alexandra C. Manson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objective: Interest in national adoption of school-provided meals is growing across Australia; however, parent perspectives are not well understood. This study aimed to understand the most important features of a potential school-provided meal system to parents of primary school children in Australia. Methods: Virtual Nominal Group Technique workshops with Australian caregivers of primary school-aged children were held to identify, discuss and prioritise features. Discussions were noted and collated collaboratively with participants, with quotes collected. Top voted features were scored using relative importance. Results: Five workshops with 25 total participants identified 28 diverse features, with interest in a comprehensive, well-designed system. Priority features were nutrition (importance score 0.46), cost (0.42), stigma considerations (0.32), catering to dietary requirements (0.29) and sustainability and waste (0.25). Conclusions: Findings demonstrated the diverse considerations for a parent-accepted school-provided meal. Prioritised features align with initiatives internationally and locally, indicating feasible strategies to inform an acceptable Australian school food transformation. Implications for public health: Provision of universally available, accessible and nutritious meals aligns with parent values and creates opportunity for public health impact. Findings can be used to inform the design of school food programs, supported by implementation strategies used internationally and locally, conducive to optimum child and parent health outcomes. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-4bb837bb0dfd4f96a3a20555a6b6aa09 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 1326-0200 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health |
| spelling | doaj-art-4bb837bb0dfd4f96a3a20555a6b6aa092025-08-20T02:09:38ZengElsevierAustralian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health1326-02002025-04-0149210022110.1016/j.anzjph.2025.100221“Not just students in need”: Findings from a nominal group technique study of what parents want in an Australian school-provided meal systemAlexandra C. Manson0Rebecca K. Golley1Dimity C. Dutch2Brittany J. Johnson3Flinders University, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Caring Futures Institute, Adelaide, SA, Australia; Flinders University, Sturt Road, Bedford Park, Tarntanya, SA 5042, Australia; Correspondence to: Flinders University, Sturt Road, Bedford Park, SA 5042, AustraliaFlinders University, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Caring Futures Institute, Adelaide, SA, Australia; Flinders University, Sturt Road, Bedford Park, Tarntanya, SA 5042, AustraliaFlinders University, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Caring Futures Institute, Adelaide, SA, Australia; Flinders University, Sturt Road, Bedford Park, Tarntanya, SA 5042, AustraliaFlinders University, College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Caring Futures Institute, Adelaide, SA, Australia; Flinders University, Sturt Road, Bedford Park, Tarntanya, SA 5042, AustraliaObjective: Interest in national adoption of school-provided meals is growing across Australia; however, parent perspectives are not well understood. This study aimed to understand the most important features of a potential school-provided meal system to parents of primary school children in Australia. Methods: Virtual Nominal Group Technique workshops with Australian caregivers of primary school-aged children were held to identify, discuss and prioritise features. Discussions were noted and collated collaboratively with participants, with quotes collected. Top voted features were scored using relative importance. Results: Five workshops with 25 total participants identified 28 diverse features, with interest in a comprehensive, well-designed system. Priority features were nutrition (importance score 0.46), cost (0.42), stigma considerations (0.32), catering to dietary requirements (0.29) and sustainability and waste (0.25). Conclusions: Findings demonstrated the diverse considerations for a parent-accepted school-provided meal. Prioritised features align with initiatives internationally and locally, indicating feasible strategies to inform an acceptable Australian school food transformation. Implications for public health: Provision of universally available, accessible and nutritious meals aligns with parent values and creates opportunity for public health impact. Findings can be used to inform the design of school food programs, supported by implementation strategies used internationally and locally, conducive to optimum child and parent health outcomes.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1326020025000020health promotionchildhood nutritionparent/caregiverperspectivesschool mealfood provision |
| spellingShingle | Alexandra C. Manson Rebecca K. Golley Dimity C. Dutch Brittany J. Johnson “Not just students in need”: Findings from a nominal group technique study of what parents want in an Australian school-provided meal system Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health health promotion childhood nutrition parent/caregiver perspectives school meal food provision |
| title | “Not just students in need”: Findings from a nominal group technique study of what parents want in an Australian school-provided meal system |
| title_full | “Not just students in need”: Findings from a nominal group technique study of what parents want in an Australian school-provided meal system |
| title_fullStr | “Not just students in need”: Findings from a nominal group technique study of what parents want in an Australian school-provided meal system |
| title_full_unstemmed | “Not just students in need”: Findings from a nominal group technique study of what parents want in an Australian school-provided meal system |
| title_short | “Not just students in need”: Findings from a nominal group technique study of what parents want in an Australian school-provided meal system |
| title_sort | not just students in need findings from a nominal group technique study of what parents want in an australian school provided meal system |
| topic | health promotion childhood nutrition parent/caregiver perspectives school meal food provision |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1326020025000020 |
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