2026 This Morning's Lifetime Achievement Award PHYLLIS LEVI, BLACKWOOD PRIMARY SCHOOL, CAERPHILLY, WALES

For more than 45 years, it’s fair to say Phyllis Levi has dedicated her life to Blackwood Primary School and at the heart of all of it has been her love for food, her incredible warmth, and her belief in its power to transform lives.

Phyllis’s journey is truly remarkable. She first started working for the council over 45 years ago as a dinner lady working just one hour a day. Through sheer dedication, meticulous organisation, and brilliant leadership, she rose through the ranks to become Cook in Charge, now leading an exceptional, highly regarded catering team that serves up to 300 lunches a day and runs a hugely popular breakfast club.

Known by every child and family, Phyllis balances firm fairness with humour, kindness, and absolute care. She makes sure every pupil feels noticed by remembering their names, their preferences, the foods they love, and the ones they avoid, turning lunchtime into a safe, joyful highlight of the school day. 

Beyond the daily service, Phyllis has anchored the wider school community by feeding staff at celebrations, supporting the school’s Community Cabin pantry, and mentoring her colleagues to ensure her flawless, 5-star food hygiene standards endure long into the future.

Phyllis beautifully embodies a whole-school culture of food education, where every year-group enjoys their own outdoor growing area to use homegrown produce in the kitchen. As she approaches a well-deserved retirement this year, her legacy is clear to see. The school estimates that Phyllis has served nearly 1 million dinners to over 10,000 pupils throughout her career, alongside hundreds of packaged meals during the pandemic. 

Well done, Phyllis, you’re an absolute legend and a very worthy winner of our 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award!

WHAT THE CELEB JUDGES THOUGHT…

“Great school food does more than fill children up, it makes them feel cared for, energises them to learn, be creative and importantly, makes them excited to come in to school the next day.  What Phyllis has done over more than 45 years is beyond special, she has dedicated her life’s work to growing children’s confidence through food. She has given them skills for life, skills that can take them into work and an excitement for food that they can take home. It goes beyond the school gates and into these kids’ futures. It’s an honour to crown Phyllis as our Lifetime Achievement Award winner and show the nation how brilliant she is and why this work matters.” Jamie Oliver

“It’s clear that Phyllis is utterly devoted to her job. It’s so lovely that she knows every child by name and has risen through the ranks while supporting the community, and for all these years served up nutritious, delicious food that is genuinely appreciated by the children, staff and parents.”  Mary Berry

Huge thanks to our headline partner, Wonde, for making the awards possible.