Finding the balance - The Good Food Cooking Sessions Scorecard - Healthy, affordable and sustainable food

Sep 28, 2026

Uploaded by lilac

A structured scorecard for planning cooking sessions that balance healthy, affordable, and sustainable food choices. It defines point-based requirements across food knowledge, key skills, catering knowledge, and specialist knowledge, then sets a target total for well-balanced courses. Guidance explains how to use the scorecard, compare covered skills, and calculate points, including instructions for evaluating topics through discussion, demonstration, or participation. Includes planning checklists and nutrition resource references.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages21

Reading Time53 min

AccessFree to download

The Good Food Cooking Sessions Scorecard

How to use this scorecard

Resources and nutrition guidance

Initial Planning Checklist

Finding the balance ... between healthy, a􀀁ordable and sustainable foods and activities The Good Food Cooking Sessions Scorecard | Section A: Food Knowledge
| | | --- | --- | | Total required: 8 points
Healthy – pick 1 (in addition to Eatwell Guide) | Your points: | | Eatwell Guide-essential
Eat from every food group, every day
Five a day
Drink plenty of fluids
Look at the label
Healthy cooking methods
Make room for fruit and veggies
Choose different parts of the plant
Snack healthily
Affordable – pick 1 | 1
| | Buy items on offer | | | Buy direct | | | Buy in bulk | | | Ingredient swaps
Limit ingredients Food banks | | | Sustainable – pick 1 | | | Organic | | | Local food Fairtrade | | | Ferment and preserve Animal welfare | | | Reduce packaging | | | Compost food waste | | | Healthy & Affordable & Sustainable – pick 3 | | | Fresh, frozen and canned | | | Healthy Start Vouchers | | | Fresh veg from food banks Choose wholegrains Bake bread | | | Grow your own vegetables Share meals
Swap food | | | Meal planning Use up leftovers | | | Healthy & Affordable & Sustainable – pick 1 | | | Correct portion sizes | | | Avoid overeating | | | Be Sugar Smart | | | Drink healthily | | | Limit or avoid alcohol
Alternatives to meat
Eat beans and pulses
Eat with the seasons Foraging | | | Your points per section: | | Your total points score: | Section B: Key Skills
| | | --- | --- | | Total required: 7 points Your points:
Cooking – pick 4 | | | Follow a recipe
Use the Good Food Cooking Toolkit to cook without recipes
Use a peeler
Knife skills
Use weighing scales
Use a hob / oven / grill
Steaming
Stir fry
Baking
Roasting
Making a sauce
Maths – pick 1 | | | Calculate weights
Calculate costs of ingredients
Measure amounts
Estimate calorific content
Cooking times and temperatures
Dealing with money to buy ingredients
Selling cooked product
English – pick 1 | | | Read a recipe in order to make it
Read dietary guidelines
Write a list of ingredients
Write out your favourite recipe
Discuss recipe ideas
Talking and listening
Make labels
ICT – pick 1 (OR another one from Maths and English) | | | Search the internet to find a recipe with certain key ingredients
Create bookmarked folder of recipes on computer Print off a recipe or email it to someone
Type up a menu
Take photos of finished menu items and upload them toa shared folder
Download and use various useful apps such as Be Food Smart Smart and Sugar Smart, Olio | | | | | |
Section C: Catering Knowledge

Total required: 4 points Your points:
Food Safety & Hygiene – pick 3 | |
Section D: Specialist Knowledge

Total required: 1 point Your points:
Employment Options | | | | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Aprons Hairbands
Handwashing Temperature controls Cross contamination Cleaning
Other Catering – pick 1
| | Foundation Pathway
Hospitality & Catering
Food Hygiene Level 2
Food Allergens Level 2 Chef's Diploma Specialisms
Health Conditions | | | | Cooking for children Fussy eating Breastfeeding Packed lunches Cooking for one
| | Metabolic syndrome (diabetes, heart disease, high
blood pressure)
Psychiatric medication
Allergies
Intolerances
Mental Wellbeing | | | | | | Eat regularly
Good fats
Eat protein
Healthy gut
Reduce caffeine
Medication
Healthy Weight Management | | | | | | What is a diet
Refer to Achieve Oxfordshire
Other | | | | | | For instance a culture-specific food skill or other aspect
of food knowledge that can help promote a healthy,
affordable and sustainable approach to food | | | | This scorecard is a tool created to help you plan your cooking sessions in a way that ensures a good balance between healthy, sustainable and affordable food. It also ensures you meet the quality standards approved by t

FAQs

What is the Good Food Cooking Sessions Scorecard used for?

It helps plan cooking sessions so they achieve a balanced mix of healthy, sustainable, and affordable food while meeting quality standards approved by the Public Health Team at Oxfordshire County Council.

How do you calculate your points for the course?

List the skills and knowledge topics you will cover, compare them with the scorecard sections, and add up the matching points across the required categories.

What does it mean to ‘cover’ a topic in the scorecard?

The topic or skill must be clearly explained to all participants, ideally using discussion, demonstration, and/or participation.

Sep 28, 2026

Uploaded by lilac