BRINGING school kitchens up to scratch so they can provide healthy lunches could cost almost £300m, according to a report.

The findings by the School Meals Review Panel, commissioned by the Government in May, suggests a radical overhaul of food provision in schools after two decades of school meals being neglected.

But the report estimates 70 per cent of school kitchens fall below the minimum requirements.

In the North-East, Durham County Council said yesterday that one of its almost 300 primary schools, did not have a kitchen, and 60 were only able to heat up food.

But the proposals suggest school cooks prepare fresh, healthy, locally produced food on site.

In Redcar, east Cleveland, three schools do not have kitchens. In Darlington the figure is five, in Hartlepool two and in Middlesbrough four.

In Stockton, council bosses estimate 25 per cent of schools would need additional equipment to meet minimum standards set out by the Government. Two schools out of the town's 66 do not have a kitchen.

Yesterday the Government pledged £220m over three years to help schools and local education authorities transform school meals through training, increased hours for cooks, equipment and a minimum spend on ingredients.

But even this may not be enough. The report suggests that putting the recommendations into place is likely to cost £500m over three years.

Yesterday, the Department for Education and Skills said additional money would be ploughed into schools via the Building Schools for the Future programme.

The school meals panel said the economic costs of improving school meals would be set against economic benefits, such as increased business for local suppliers and longer hours for kitchen staff.

One of those in the region who welcomed the report was Dr Amelia Lake, a nutritionist from Newcastle University. She said the suggested menus would improve concentration and mental performance and behaviour, and would set a healthy trend for the rest of children's lives.

Eileen Robinson, catering service manager for Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council, said: "We would welcome any improvements and will work with the guidelines and standards which come out. We could always do with money to make improvements."

Anita Brown, Stockton Borough Council's service manager catering and cleaning services said: "We are adapting to the Government's guidelines on healthy school meals and as a result the standard of meals in Stockton's schools is high. We have increased our spending on school meals and this has allowed us to install salad bars and offer a wider choice of healthy meal options."

Since March, Stockton council has increased the amount it spends on ingredients for school meals from 35p to 52p.

Last month, five secondary schools in County Durham pulled out of a county-wide school meals service to provide food in-house.