Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what plans she has to issue additional guidance to local education authorities on the effect of sugar on young people's health.

The government wants pupils to be healthy and well nourished. We encourage a healthy balanced diet and healthy life choices through early years and school funding, legislation and guidance.

In July 2015 the Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) published its report on Carbohydrates and Health, available to view here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/sacn-carbohydrates-and-health-report.

SACN concluded that increases in sugar consumption lead to increases in energy intake and that consuming sugary drinks results in weight gain and increases in body mass index in children and adolescents. The Committee recommended that the intake of free sugars should not exceed 5% of total dietary energy and that the consumption of sugar sweetened drinks should be minimised in both children and adults. These recommendations were accepted into government policy.

Messages on sugar are communicated via a range of different routes, including Change4Life materials of which are available to schools. The Public Health England (PHE) Campaign Resource Centre available at: https://campaignresources.phe.gov.uk/resources/ is a ‘one stop shop’ for all PHE marketing campaign resources and might be of use to local educational authorities on this issue. There are no plans to provide additional guidance on this issue at this time.