Educators and seafood industry leaders gathered at Fishmongers’ Hall on Friday 20th June for the Fish in School Hero Teacher Awards and Conference, celebrating six years of achievement in training over 1,000 teachers and reaching well over 100,000 pupils, inspiring the next generation of seafood lovers across the UK.
The Fish in School Hero aims to ensure that every child gets the chance to cook, eat and enjoy seafood before they leave school. It is supported by Industry Heroes: fishmongers, seafood-loving chefs, suppliers and producers.
Organised by the Food Teachers Centre in partnership with the Fishmongers’ Company, Friday’s conference included an awards ceremony recognising exceptional teachers and industry leaders whose dedication has been instrumental in the success of the Fish in School Hero programme. Awards were presented to secondary school food teachers who demonstrated outstanding commitment to seafood education through the programme.
Seafood industry partners who have “gone above and beyond” to support schools were also recognised in the awards ceremony, which brought together more than 220 participants, including food teachers from across the country, who, thanks to training and support from the Fish in School hero programme have been championing responsible seafood choices and cookery skills in their schools.
The industry awards recognised “Fish Hero” businesses who have given up their time to join fish masterclasses, donated a range of different seafood including rope-grown mussels, salmon, sustainably caught hake and scallops, and supported with the logistics of delivery to secondary schools across the country, helping to ensure that schools nationwide have been able to work with quality sustainable seafood over the past six years.
These awards highlighted the power of collaboration between schools and the seafood industry in building a more sustainable future for food education.
Among those the congratulate the award winners, celebrity chef and children’s food advocate Jamie Oliver took the time to record a special message of support and congratulations and in a surprise announcement, singled out Fish Hero award winner Sara Randle as winner of the 2025 Jamie Oliver Good Food Educator Award.
The conference was also a chance for teachers to catch up with the latest evidence on nutrition, sustainability and economy, and get information on careers relevant to pupils and their parents. Keynote speakers included representatives from the prestigious cookery school Leith’s Education, the British Nutrition Foundation, the Marine Stewardship Council ecolabel, and industry body Seafish, all underscoring the importance of educating young people about the environmental, nutritional, and economic value of UK-caught fish. Some of their presentations can be found here.
“This initiative is about more than food—it’s about equipping the next generation with the knowledge and skills to make sustainable seafood choices that will last them a lifetime” said Louise Davies, Founder of the Food Teachers Centre.
“Now, literally, thousands and thousands of young people across the UK are preparing, cooking and eating more fish because of the programme. It’s a real pleasure to see the change happening nationwide,” said Simon Gray, Fish In School Hero programme leader.
The conference concluded with a call to action from Dan Aherne, CEO of New England Seafood and member of the Fishmongers’ Company, where he called upon the seafood sector to further their support for the programme, helping to build and inspire a new generation of seafood consumers, helping to support our fishing industry and delivering key nutritional benefits to the population.
“This programme is a wonderful example of strength in collaboration for greater good, and I am so pleased by what the seafood and education sectors have achieved together in the past six years. Reaching one quarter of all UK high schools is something to be proud of, but we know that demand is out there, and with the support of industry we hope the next six years will bring even greater reach and impact, in support of good food teaching, which is so vital for young people” said Eleanor Adamson from The Fishmongers Company’s Fisheries Charitable Trust.
Since its launch in 2019, the Fish in School Hero programme has grown, now reaching students in over 1,200 secondary schools every year. Support from industry champions including, Offshore Shellfish, Alaska Seafood, Sysco – M&J Seafood, Fastnet Fish Ltd, DFDS UK and the Cods Scallops restaurant group, has enabled the programme to deliver lessons with fish to over 170,000 secondary school pupils in their food preparation & nutrition or catering classes in the past few years.
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