School canteen workers to be paid and students to work in the tuck shop emerge as ideas to stem crisis

Proposals to stem the national crisis at school canteens include pushing for tuck shop workers to be paid and for students to get behind the counter. Join the debate, or take our poll.

Funding for all canteen workers and allowing students to staff tuck shops are among proposals floated at a national conference to save school lunch providers as they struggle to remain open.

With tuck shops closing in South Australia and across the country, a national roundtable organised by the Federation for Canteens in Schools (FOCIS) convened on Tuesday to discuss “the critical future of school canteens across Australia”.

The crisis comes as The Advertiser revealed campuses which closed their canteens or had to raise prices in SA included Pimpala, Reynella and Aberfoyle Hub primary schools in 2025.

More than 90 stakeholders across the country including parent bodies, canteen workers and nutritionists joined the conference via video call to share their experiences and offer solutions to ease tuck shop woes.

Dietitian and FOCIS chairwoman Leanne Elliston said canteen staff need to be paid.

FOCIS chairwoman and dietitian Leanne Elliston said school canteens needed to be recognised as “an essential service”.

“We need to look after that service for the sake of our children and families,” Ms Elliston said.

The most prevalent issue raised at the roundtable was staffing, with volunteers becoming more difficult to attract for many schools.

“We agreed the current model that runs on volunteers is an outdated model,” she said.

“We need recognition for staff and that they’re paid properly.”

Another proposal was for students to work in canteens to help ease the burden on volunteers.

“It could be an educational experience and here’s a nice, safe environment where they can get that work experience,” Ms Elliston said.

Ms Elliston said the group was developing policy briefs to take to federal and state governments.

SA Primary Principals Association president Tobias O’Connor said while. Picture: Australian Primary Principals Association website

But SA Primary Principals Association president Tobias O’Connor said government funding of canteen workers was not realistic and cited more pressing issues such as ageing school infrastructure should be more of a priority.

“Whilst I completely understand the thinking, there are so many competing demands as to where we’re spending money in education,” Mr O’Connor said.

“If I had a spare $20m, it wouldn’t go into canteens.”

Mr O’Connor supported students getting behind the counter at tuck shops, an initiative which worked at Keith Area School, where he was principal until 2023.

“I think there could be a good opportunity for young people to step in,” he said.

An Education Department spokeswoman said it “offers a range of supports to schools so they can operate canteens for families, including the Canteen Support Service that helps with establishing and maintaining canteens”.

“We wait to hear from the federation regarding its proposal,” she said.

The department contacted school sites this term “to remind them of the canteen support service available through the department to establish or maintain school canteens”.

Originally published as School canteen workers to be paid and students to work in the tuck shop emerge as ideas to stem crisis