Community statistics · Maths CAS idea
Measure and reduce canteen food waste
ServiceProject-ready
Weigh food waste in the canteen over several weeks, try one change with the catering team and measure the effect.
Where the maths comes in
Measurement, averages, variation and before-and-after comparison.
Which CAS strand it fits
- Service: Unpaid, voluntary work with others that also has a learning benefit for you.
Your CAS coordinator decides how an experience counts at your school. Strand summaries are provisional (our words, being checked).
How to run it
- Agree the project with catering staff and a teacher.
- Weigh waste daily for two weeks as a baseline.
- Try one agreed change (portion choice, signs, menu order).
- Measure again and report the difference and its uncertainty.
This can grow into a CAS project if your CAS coordinator agrees: see planning a maths CAS project.
How to evidence it
- Measurement log
- The change you agreed and why
- Results shared with the school
Date everything and keep it in your school's CAS portfolio as you go. More on what counts as evidence.
Reflection prompts
Questions to think about, not answers to copy. Write your reflections in your own words, in whatever form your school accepts.
- How did catering staff's views change your plan?
- How confident are you that the change made a difference?
- How does waste in one canteen relate to a global issue?
Learning outcomes this often gives a chance to show
- Global significance. How does the local need you worked on connect to a wider issue? What did you learn about that issue that you did not know before?
- Collaboration. What did someone else bring that you could not have done alone? Describe a disagreement or a mix-up in the team. How was it resolved?
- Commitment and perseverance. When did you feel like stopping, and what kept you going? What does your record of sessions or meetings show about how regularly you took part?
Whether you meet an outcome depends on what you actually do and reflect on, not on the idea. Outcome labels are our short summaries, being checked.
Safety and ethics
- Follow kitchen hygiene rules: gloves, staff supervision, no handling food you should not.
Agree every plan with your CAS coordinator first. Safety and ethics for maths CAS.
Need the statistics? The statistics guide (written for the IA) explains tests and charts step by step. Keep CAS and your IA separate.