Choosing Healthy Eating when Really Young (CHERRY)

INTERVENTION: Choosing Healthy Eating when Really Young (CHERRY) is an exploratory randomised controlled trial with the aim of improving the diet of children under 5, attending children's centres in Islington and Cornwall. It is a four week programme with one 2 hour session each week. The sessions are led by a trained health trainer who delivers an hour's theory about food and nutrition for under‐fives, followed by an hour's practical cooking session involving the children. 16 children's centres (6 in Islington and 10 in Cornwall) were recruited to the study. In Cornwall, only centres in rural settings were selected to provide a rural/urban comparison. 21 families were recruited from each centre. In July 2009, 7 centres were randomly selected to receive the intervention and 7 to act as controls. A further two were randomised in Cornwall in August 2011. The intervention phase of the trial ran from October 2010 to October 2011. CHERRY also aims to instigate change in children's centres, improving food provision and policy. Staff training around key aspects of food and nutrition was delivered in intervention centres. Control centres did not receive any additional support other than what is currently offered by the Local Authority or local NHS organisation, and were asked not to initiate any additional nutrition‐based programmes for families. Participants from both arms are followed up at 6 months. CONDITION: Nutrition in early years ; Nutritional, Metabolic, Endocrine ; Other nutritional deficiencies PRIMARY OUTCOME: Child's fruit and vegetable consumption (portions per day) SECONDARY OUTCOME: 1. Child's consumption of soft drinks and sugary snacks (as an indicator of NMES consumption). Parent/guardians' consumption of selected foods and drinks e.g. fruit and vegetables, sugary snacks and drinks; 2. Parent/guardians' food knowledge, confidence and self‐efficacy ; 3. Parent/guardians' 'food involvement'; 4. Food provision and policy within children's centres INCLUSION CRITERIA: 1. Child aged 18 months to 5 years 2. Attending children's centres in Cornwall and Islington 3. Full parental consent given