The project is being led by the South & West Wales Fishing Communities Ltd (SWWFC) and delivered by the Swansea Bay FLAG with support from Seafish. It has been part-funded by the European Fisheries Fund through the Welsh Government.
The education lessons have been inspired by Seafish’s education resource through its Fish is the Dish campaign, which has been developed specifically to support primary school teachers across the UK to deliver healthy eating lessons based around seafood.
The new cross-curricular resource, for children aged 5-7 years, supports cooking and tasting activities and looks at different species of fish common to Wales as part of a healthy balanced diet.
The education resource encourages schools to work in partnership with local seafood businesses to supply produce and help with delivering lessons. As part of the Swansea Bay FLAG project, Oystermouth Primary School was one of the schools visited by an education consultant with local produce provided by Swansea Fish including sea bass, crab, and cockles before making some deliciously simple fish dishes to try.
Marion Warlow, Fisheries Co-ordinator at SWFFC, said: “We are delighted to be co-ordinating the Fish is the Dish Education Programme through funding from the Swansea Bay FLAG and Seafish. It’s a great way to encourage children to eat more fish and to help improve the knowledge and understanding of the local seafood and local fisheries interests in the Swansea Bay FLAG area amongst primary school children, their teachers and the wider community.”
Dr Holly Whiteley, Seafish Wales Regional Manager, said: “Fish can be an important way of learning about a wide variety of topics - not just cooking. The children can learn all about how the fish are caught and how they get to their plate. The education pack and online resources provide teachers with the tools they need to deliver fun and engaging lessons for children and we encourage them to partner with local seafood businesses to really get the most out of the opportunities.”
The Fish is the Dish education pack, available in English and Welsh, can be downloaded for free at www.fishisthedish.co.uk/education. A hard copy can also be requested.
