EAST Renfrewshire Council has won a national award for putting fresh and seasonal food on the menu at its primary schools.

The Soil Association Scotland confirmed the local authority has secured its Food for Life Served Here bronze award.

East Renfrewshire has held the accreditation for the last six years, recognising its efforts to put more seasonal food on school dinner plates and serve freshly-prepared, sustainable meals.

The Food for Life Served Here award highlights councils that are serving food made from fresh ingredients, using free-range eggs and high-welfare meat, and free from genetically modified ingredients and undesirable additives.

East Renfrewshire Council serves 3,000 Food for Life accredited meals a day across its 27 certified primary schools.

As part of the council’s work towards the Food for Life Served Here award, primary school pupils enjoy a seasonal menu that is updated twice a year.

Staff choose from a variety of fruit and vegetables, including kale and fresh beetroot, and help pupils learn more about what it means to eat seasonally by displaying posters in the dining hall.

Councillor Paul O’Kane, East Renfrewshire’s education and equalities convener, said: “To gain this accreditation for the sixth year in a row is testament to the hard work and dedication of our fantastic catering staff.”