Natural nursery group Back to the Garden Childcare has appointed AA Rosette award winning chef Luke Tew to lead its commitment to great food and nutrition as it continues to expand across the North West.

Based at the nursery’s recently opened second setting in Lymm, Cheshire, Luke is responsible for delivering an exceptional early years food strategy that combines top quality, nutritionally-balanced menus packed with locally sourced, seasonal and organic ingredients to provide an all-round social and educational experience for the children learning where their food comes from.

Committed to encouraging young children to be adventurous and experiment with food, Luke will use his award winning catering skills to make appetising and appealing meals that educate the children’s developing tastebuds and prove that food in an early years setting does not need to be bland and boring.

He will also welcome the children into the kitchen to help with the preparing, cooking and serving of food as part of the nursery curriculum and a daily social task to be shared by all, including the babies who are given the opportunity to serve and feed themselves as soon as they are able.

Back to the Garden Childcare puts food centre stage

A self-confessed ‘foodie’, Luke has had a life-long love affair with food starting off as the local fruit and veg boy at the age of 14 and progressing on to work in a variety of high end restaurants and gastro pubs across Manchester and Cheshire.

With a young family of his own, he fully understands the importance of quality food and social dining from an early age and is looking forward to putting Back to the Garden Childcare on the map for food and nutrition.

Luke stated: “I am literally obsessed with food and have been thinking and experimenting with food for as long as I can remember, so I’m delighted to take on this new challenge and consciously think about the quality and nutritional balance of the food that we deliver here at Back to the Garden.  The understanding and enjoyment of great food is one of the cornerstones of a good life so our mealtimes are fun, social occasions not to be rushed with everyone coming together to taste, touch and talk about the delicious food that we are going to enjoy.”

Nursery founder Jeannie Pickering added: “Food is so important in the early years, laying the foundations and establishing good habits for life.  With our organic, fresh food deliveries and Luke’s talent and skills in developing and serving tempting menus, we are confident that we will set new standards in great food, solid nutrition and embracing social dining in our family childcare setting.”

Its philosophy of allowing children to be children to explore their environment, experiment with the outdoor playscape and harness their own imaginations allows for a natural approach where each child develops at their own pace.