£5 meal challenge
Plan an affordable meal with example supermarket prices. Check ingredients and allergies first.
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Use the full activities here, or choose short Easy Read steps with visual clues and a practice question.
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Watch: Cooking & Nutrition
A practical independent living skills lesson. Use the activities below to discuss and practise afterwards.
Read the video transcript
Cooking starts with a meal you fancy making. Choose safe ingredients, check any allergies, and plan what you need. Try preparing one simple meal with the support that works for you.
Start here: three practical activities
These examples come from the Nexsteps Independent Living Skills Workbook. Choose an appropriate activity rather than treating this as a test.
- ACTIVITY 1Prepare one chosen meal
Make a chosen meal with agreed support and safe ingredients.
- ACTIVITY 2Plan three meals
Plan three meals and a costed shopping list.
- ACTIVITY 3Check food labels and allergies
Check allergy information, dates and storage labels.
TRY SOMETHING INTERACTIVE
Make a choice. See what happens.
This is a fictional situation. Choose the response that feels most helpful and explore the feedback. It is not a test, and your choices are not recorded.
Try it: Plan a simple meal
Choose ingredients for an example meal. There is no single correct combination.
MORE WAYS TO LEARNEXTRA ACTIVITY 4 EXTRA ACTIVITY 5 EXTRA ACTIVITY 6
Three more real-life challenges
Choose the challenges that matter to you. Try them in a safe, supported way where needed. Ticking a box is only for your own use and is not stored.
Kitchen safety detective
Look at a fictional kitchen situation and spot food hygiene or hot-pan hazards.
Cook together, reflect together
With agreed support, make a snack or meal and record what you enjoyed and would change.
For practitioners · optional demonstration
Talk through this activity with Dawn
Try an AI voice demonstration about this skill using made-up examples. This is a restricted adult or staff-supervised pilot, not an unsupervised service for young people. You do not need AI to complete the activities.
Learn about the Dawn AI pilot →Review and save my own goal in My Nexsteps →
The voice guide does not save or mark this activity as completed. Do not enter personal case details.
My progress, my choices
Choose an activity and work at your own pace. When you try it, tick the box and reflect on what went well. There is no test to pass, and using support is an achievement too.
This activity is private to this browser page. Your answers are not sent to Nexsteps or saved. Do not include private personal details.
Create a Life Map missionMake this part of your own journey
Choose an activity linked to a goal that matters to you. Try it with the support you prefer, reflect on what worked and add your achievement to your personal progress record.
Plan a goal and review progress → Explore My Life. My Future. My Way. →Who is this for?
Young people aged 16–18 preparing for adulthood, including young people looked after or in supported accommodation. Key workers, personal advisers and other trusted adults can support each activity. Some activities also suit care-experienced young adults.
Learn · Try · Practise · Evidence · Review · Progress
Agree the young person’s goal, the support and any safety arrangements. Use fictional examples for sensitive topics and follow safeguarding procedures. Record only necessary evidence; never put private disclosures or identifying details into public website forms.
Want the full workbook?
The complete Nexsteps workbook includes guided worksheets, fictional scenarios and progress reviews for practitioners and young people.
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