School catering
Meals are an important part of the school day
Eating together offers a pleasant break during the school day. Meals provide energy and also help pupils learn about healthy eating, different food cultures, the environmental impacts of food, and the importance of good table manners. At the same time, pupils’ and students' interaction and social skills develop.
All pupils and students have the right to free school meals.
Lunch in Espoo’s comprehensive and general upper secondary schools includes a salad bar, two alternative hot main courses, crispbread with a soft-fat spread, and an oil-based salad dressing. Beverage options are skimmed milk, buttermilk and water. On soup and porridge days, fruit and soft bread are also served.
School lunches are planned in accordance with the dietary recommendations of The National Nutrition Council of Finland, such as Eating and learning together – recommendations for school meals(external link, opens in a new window)
According to these guidelines, school meals supplement the rest of the day’s meals and should cover about one third of a person’s daily energy needs. A school meal should correspond to THL’s plate model for a balanced meal. Pupils can have more than one serving of food if necessary.
The dietary needs notification form can be found on page Forms and instructions. The form must be submitted to the school or general upper secondary school kitchen at the beginning of every school year, preferably before the beginning of school. The form can be filled in on a computer. Print the filled-in form, sign it and submit it to the school or general upper secondary school kitchen.
The following special dietary needs are reported on the form
- severe food allergy
- other diet based on a recommendation by a doctor or a nutritionist
- religious diet
- vegetarian or vegan diet
A special diet will be arranged in schools or general upper secondary school for health reasons based on a medical certificate. A medical certificate is not required for minor allergies, low-lactose or lactose-free diets, lakto-ovo vegetarian diets, vegan diets or diets based on religious reasons. More detailed instructions can be found in the The dietary needs notification form.
Kitchen staff will provide guidance and answer any food-related questions.
Espoo Catering Oy produces meals for the majority of Espoo’s schools, general upper secondary school, day care centres and afternoon activities.
Other meal service producers
Palmia Oy
- Aarnivalkean koulu
- Karamalmens daghem och förskola
- Karamalmens skola
- Kilon päiväkoti
- Kilon koulu
- Kilonpuiston koulu
- Laajalahden koulu
- Leppäsillan päiväkoti (Kerassa)
- Mankkaan päiväkoti
- Mankkaanpuron koulu
- Oravanpesä, esikouluryhmä
- Pohjois-Tapiolan koulu
- Seilimäen päiväkoti (Kerassa)
- Smedsby skola
- Smedsby förskola
- Sunan koulusta osa (Laajalahden koulussa)
- Taavinkylän koulu
- Taavintupa, esikouluryhmä
Folkhälsan Syd Ab
- Vindängenin päiväkoti ja koulu
Compass Group Oy
- Espoon yhteislyseon lukio
- Osa Kilonpuiston yläkoulusta
- Otaniemen lukio
- Leppävaaran lukio
Sodexo Oy
- Kuninkaantien lukio
- Palmia Oy’s menus(external link, opens in a new window)
- Espoo Catering Oy’s menus(external link, opens in a new window)
- Menus of Espoon yhteislyseon lukio and Tiistilän yläkoulu(external link, opens in a new window)
- Sodexo Oy, menu of Kuninkaantien lukio(external link, opens in a new window)
- Compass Group Oy, menu of Otaniemen lukio and Tietokylä(external link, opens in a new window)
Some of the meals on the menus are marked with a heart symbol, indicating that they are particularly healthy, with good quality fats, moderate amounts of salt and sugar, and a high fibre content.
The kitchen staff at your child’s school will provide guidance and answer any questions. You can give feedback on meals, for example, via the catering service providers’ websites or through the City of Espoo’s feedback service.
- School catering | City of Espoo (catering service providers by school)
- Feedback service | City of Espoo(external link, opens in a new window)
Visit the Omaperhe website at Omaperhe – Eating and food(external link, opens in a new window), or contact the student welfare services of the Western Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County: Student welfare services | Western Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County(external link, opens in a new window).
