by Jamie Stephens

Children across Medway have been learning how to make the most of leftover food.

cornflake chicken

2 skinless chicken breasts

2 tbsp plain flour

1 egg

150g crushed cornflakes

halve the chicken breasts lengthways and season with pepper.

roll them in flour and dip them in the beaten egg.

roll them in the crushed cornflakes and gently press on the cornflake crumbs to make them stick.

lightly spray the chicken with oil and grill until chicken is no longer pink.

New statistics suggest families with children throw away nearly £700 worth of food every year but council chiefs are aiming to change that with a series of workshops.

The Eat Well Waste Less campaign tries to giving families top tips on how to save money, stay healthy and have fun at the same time.

Four events across the area saw kids being taught how to make simple tasty recipes with stuff that would normally get chucked out.

Cornflake chicken, spicy popcorn, vegetable pizza, museli cake and dips were just some of the dishes on the menu, all made out of common household cast-offs.

Emma Parker, a Public Health Project Worker at Medway Council, said "It's so important to get children involved in food so they learn where it comes from and how to cook it. That way hopefully they'll put these skills to use in later life."

Unsurprisingly pizza was the biggest hit in terms of recipes with kids as young as four learning how to make a low-fat, low sugar alternative to the off-the-shelf version.

Audio: Children tell us their favourite recipes

Around 1,000 people turned up at the week's events and experts were on hand to give advice on a range of other issues including housing, waste services, fire safety and employment.

The event was funded by the European Inspirer project and run jointly by Medway Council and the Public Health department.