After-school clubs to help children learn to cook are being launched in Pembrokeshire this week. The new Cook-it clubs aim to help young people enjoy food through cooking healthy and tasty meals, as well as acquire other food skills.

The clubs will be launched during the Grow It, Cook It, Eat it classroom initiative at Scolton Manor, near Haverfordwest, this week.

Celebrity chef Angela Grey, of Cook Start, will lead two training sessions - believed to be the first in Wales - for teachers, school cooks and learning support assistants who will help run the clubs. The new Cook-it clubs will be piloted at several county primary schools this autumn and if successful are likely to be rolled out across the county.

Clr. Sian James, cabinet member for health and well-being, said the clubs aimed to help youngsters plan and cook balanced meals with fresh produce, budget and shop effectively, as well as store and prepare food safely.

"Unfortunately skills that we once took for granted have become lost in recent years and many of today's youngsters have never learnt how to cook properly," she said.

"With so much junk food on offer and a growing concern about obesity levels, it is more important than ever that cooking skills are re-learnt."

Run by Pembrokeshire County Council, the scheme is largely funded through grants from the Welsh Assembly Government, with support also coming from the Healthy School Scheme led by the National Public Health Service.