We have nothing to fear except everything

September is the best month of the year in the school meals industry. It's when secondary schools are at their busiest and primary schools have all the new "babies", as all my staff call the reception class children.

It's a very nervous time for everyone. Dropping off my 12-year-old niece and her friend, both in second year, at their secondary school for the start of the new year, they were terribly nervous about the first day back.

It must also be a nervous time for first-time teachers - especially if you're a secondary school teacher and half the pupils are taller than you.

As for our catering staff, many of them are new and, for some, it is a return to the workforce after years away, starting a family - so they too can experience nerves.

But the most nervous person at the start of the new school year was undoubtedly me.

We had committed to installing new front and back service counters in six schools, including the complete replacement of cooking equipment in two of them. Dates and time frames were set prior to the summer holidays, and sub-contractors lined up to cover electrical and building requirements.

We had even allowed sufficient time at the back end of the holidays, should any emergencies occur.

But by the start of the new school year, only two of the six schools had been completed and, although we managed to open the other four, most of the outstanding work now cannot be completed until the October half-term.

In hindsight, it appears that we have a problem with the six-week summer holiday - it's about six weeks too short. Too many schools want work done during the summer closure and, for many companies that undertake work in schools, it is a time for holidays for their employees as well.

And while caretaking and school staff are normally on site during term time from 6am until 6pm, in the summer holidays they will often reduce this to 8am until 4pm. On top of this, many suppliers seem unable to refuse work, or at least to say that they cannot complete in the given time.

Nobody likes to say no, especially in our industry, but there are times when it may be in the best interest of your reputation to refuse the work.

If nothing else, it might just cut down on sleepless nights.

RICHARD WARE is head of catering and house services at the London Borough of Havering

Next diary from Richard Ware: 2 November