Supporting school kitchen gardens

Our Central Coast School Garden Interest Group provides a platform for teachers and staff supporting school kitchen gardens to connect with one another and share ideas around school gardens, food and nutrition learning experiences, practical cooking sessions and environmental sustainability practices like composting.

We also develop resources and share local case studies to provide inspiration on how a school garden can be successfully implemented at your school.

Two school boys picking veg out from a vegetable patch.
School children showing off vegetables to a teacher.

Why have a school garden?

Having a garden can help your school to promote environmental and sustainable learning as well as encourage healthy eating and physical activity. It’s a fun way to learn outside and provides students with a hands-on opportunity to prepare, eat and share the food they have grown.

Participation in a school garden program has been shown to help improve knowledge and confidence in relation to growing, preparing, cooking and eating a diverse range of fresh foods among Australian children.[1]

Can my school have a kitchen garden?

Any school can have some sort of garden or kitchen, regardless of their site, size, resources, gardening experience or classroom space. Here are some useful guides on how to start a kitchen garden and how you can use your garden to promote environmental and sustainability learning for students.

Plants growing in a vegetable patch.

How to start a kitchen garden

Tips for set up, recipes and stage-based NSW curriculum-linked lesson plans.

Fruit and vegetable sof a variety of colours laid out on a table.

Kitchen gardening for sustainability

NSW Department of Education resources outlining the practical steps for creating and maintaining a kitchen garden, active student participation and cross-curricular syllabus content.

Central Coast School Garden Interest Group

The Central Coast School Garden Interest Group shares ideas and connects Central Coast primary schools with an interest in school gardens and cooking.

The group encourages food, nutrition and environmental sustainability teaching with a focus on practical, hands-on learning experiences

The group meets face to face twice each year, with a different school hosting the meeting and sharing their experiences. Regular updates are shared with the group via email.

Dates for upcoming workshops will be posted here.

For all updates from the Central Coast School Garden Interest Group on upcoming workshops and resources, join our primary schools mailing list.

A presentation being delivered to a group of teachers at a Central Coast School Garden Interest Group meeting.

“I am very excited for all activities that have been offered in the past and eagerly look forward to ongoing workshops. Amazing professional learning.”

School gardens workshop participant

Harvest for Health Grant

In 2022, in partnership with Rumbalara Environmental Education Centre, Central Coast Health Promotion Service offered five Harvest for Health grants, each worth $1000, to local primary schools.

The Harvest for Health Grant supports the creation of supportive school environments for healthy eating and environmental sustainability via school produce gardens and/or kitchens.

Check out the case studies from the schools who received the grant.

Gorokan Public School's Mr Stacky.

Gorokan Public School

A student from Green Point Christian College holding vegetables from its garden.

Green Point Christian College

School children from Empire Bay Public School holding orange.

Empire Bay Public School

An exterior image of Jilliby Public School.

Jilliby Public School

Somersby Public School's vegetable cart.

Somersby Public School

Patch to Plate recipes

Patch to Plate is a free recipe book developed by Central Coast Health Promotion Service that includes healthy and simple recipes that local teachers have made with their students using fresh ingredients from their own school gardens.

Download the recipe book and try these tasty recipes at school or at home. You can also watch and share how to prepare four of our delicious recipes from the Patch to Plate book in the video series.

Beetroot hummus

Rice paper rolls

Pea & haloumi fritters

Spinach & feta gozleme

Other pages you might be interested in

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