Over 2000 Birmingham students discover the joys of healthy eating with Michelin-starred Chef Director, David Taylor

Over 2000 primary school children were encouraged to swap their pencils for utensils, as they collectively took part in the annual Health for Life® ‘Cookathon’ - this year led by David Taylor, Chef Director of Solihull-based Michelin-starred restaurant Grace and Savour and sister-site, Kynd.

Organised by Services For Education, as part of Birmingham’s Health for Life^® initiative the annual Cookathon saw over 44 primary schools from across the region cook along live with David, learning practical culinary skills first-hand and discovering the importance of healthy eating.

Led-by expert chef, award-winning restaurant director and father of two, David Taylor, students aged 6 to 11 years old at Barford Primary School in Ladywood were selected for an in-person cooking lesson, with the students being guided through a Smashed Cucumber and Chicken Flatbread recipe designed by David for the event, teaching pupils key kitchen skills such as how to make dough from scratch, use a frying pan, and prepare chicken.

Simultaneously, thousands of other primary school students from across the UK, and one school in Australia, were invited to join the class virtually, following a bespoke step-by-step tutorial video which David had pre-recorded from the state-of-the-art kitchen at his restaurant, Grace and Savour, set in the grounds of Hampton Manor.

Leading the Cookathon programme for the first time this year, David’s career began in the Midlands, originally starting under the guidance of Birmingham’s Glynn Purnell, before moving to Norway where he was part of the team that won three Michelin stars at Oslo’s, Maaemo. Opening his first solo restaurant, Grace and Savour, at Hampton Manor to critical acclaim in 2022, David and his wife Annette Taylor, achieved a Michelin star just one year later, shortly followed by the opening of sister-site, Kynd, in 2025.

An advocate for sustainable practices and craftsmanship of food, Grace and Savour under David’s guidance, also holds a 360 Sustainability Rating, ranking as one of the UK’s leading restaurants for ecological practices, only using hyper-local, regeneratively farmed, and foraged ingredients from the restaurant’s Victorian walled garden and nearby ethical farmers.

David comments: “Getting children cooking and loving food is one of the most important things we can give our kids. Food creates community, health, relationships and an accessible craft which only means deliciousness for everyone.

“Health for Life's work is so important, and nothing gets people together like food, so getting kids mucky and exploring the wonderful results of what being creative with food can be like is something I’m hopeful they can take with them for the rest of their lives.”

Karl Matysik, Deputy Head Teacher at Barford Primary School, added: “We’re thrilled that our school was selected to host David for the Health for Life^® Cookathon, and to have participated in such a fantastic event.”

“Our pupils have thoroughly enjoyed taking part in the Health for Life programme, and it was brilliant to see their enthusiasm and learning manifest in the live cooking session alongside David, which is an experience I'm confident they will remember for years to come as they continue to adopt a healthy lifestyle through the nutritious meals they create.”

This year marks the fifth Cookathon event, which forms part of the Health for Life^® programme, created and funded by Mondelēz International and delivered in Birmingham-based schools by Services For Education, a consultancy and support service for schools and educational settings. Since its inception in 2011, the Health for Life^® programme has worked with 239 schools and engaged over 86,000 school children across Birmingham.

The programme provides support and resources to schools, focusing on growing food, healthy eating and physical activity with pupils growing their own fruit and vegetables in school and learning how to cook which encourages them to lead a healthy lifestyle.

Lucie Welch, Education Advisor at Services For Education, added: “The Cookathon event continues to be extremely popular, and has grown incredibly over the last couple of years. This year, we’re thrilled to have partnered with David, who has brought a wealth of knowledge and offered our young participants new insight from his expert culinary career, as he joins us as our lead chef.

“It’s always such a joy to witness all of the children cooking along to the same recipe at the same time, and we’re proud to help inspire young people to embrace the joy of cooking and living healthily, and we’re already looking forward to planning ahead for 2027!”

David’s easy, healthy recipe isn’t only available to pupils but is also accessible to families who wish to get involved in creating the tasty dish at home, following the step-by-step video from the Cookathon, which can be viewed via https://www.servicesforeducation.co.uk/health-for-life/#tab_cookathon-2026

For more information about the Health for Life^®programme and its work, visit Health For Life - Services For Education.