Bremner & Southwark Council
Overview
Southwark Council commissioned us to design and deliver an innovative school food management training programme for all school business managers (SBMs) across the borough. Using a co-design approach, we worked with 12 SBMs to identify the knowledge and competencies needed to confidently oversee high-quality school food. The training was embedded into an accredited continual professional development (CPD) framework, ensuring long-term sustainability and professional growth.
Our Approach
We applied a collaborative, user-centred design process to create a training programme that meets both council objectives and the professional development needs of SBMs. The course content was shaped through co-design with 12 SBMs from Southwark, drawing directly on their real-world experiences and needs. We developed a flexible, modular online learning framework to support different learning paces and styles. The training was designed to contribute to both professional growth and improvements in school food, with accredited CPD integrated throughout. Finally, we created a scalable model that can be adopted by other local authorities seeking to strengthen their approach to school food training.
Key Outcomes
The Southwark SBM School Food Management Training Programme has now been launched and is being rolled out across 70+ schools in the borough. As the first CPD-accredited course of its kind, it equips school business managers with the skills and knowledge to take a leadership role in improving school food. The programme has gained national recognition, with other local authorities expressing interest in adopting a similar approach. By embedding training within a professional development framework, the initiative promotes a long-term, whole-school commitment to providing nutritious meals.
Testimonials
The Bremner team took a professional and caring approach when co-designing the course with 12 school business managers (SBMs). They made sure that the course met our brief as well as supporting SBMs’ own continual professional development, which required a degree of flexibility as the curriculum content and delivery format was considered. The team actively listened, constructively challenged, and responded to feedback from council officers and the design team to end up with an excellent holistic package of training, guidance, and support for all primary schools and nursery settings.
Gillian Boundy, Senior Public Health Programme Manager – Food Systems, Southwark Council
“This project was all about empowering school business managers to play a more confident and active role in school food. By working closely with the SBMs themselves, we made sure the training was practical, relevant, and directly tied to the realities of running a busy school. Embedding the programme within an accredited CPD framework means it’s not just a one-off course; it’s part of their professional growth and the school’s long-term commitment to good food. We’re proud that this model is now gaining national interest as a blueprint for improving school food management at scale.”
Myles Bremner, CEO, Bremner & Co
Our Services
This project showcases our expertise in service design, training development, and multi-stakeholder collaboration. Our innovative, co-designed approach ensures sustainable, scalable impact in school food management. If your organisation is looking to develop CPD-accredited training or improve school food systems, we can help.
Interested in learning more about how we can support your work in school food training, service design, and policy implementation? Get in touch today.
