School Meals v Packed Lunch

pavlovs_dog

i suppose there's another health and safety issue there - people stabbing themselves/others :eek: bloody democracy and red tape, nothng is ever easy in this day and age.

whatever you use, would suggest blunting the end/covering them with something

p_d

elona

Once you have threaded the fruit on to the toothpick then you could cut off the sharp end with scissors!

Would love to know what comment OP gets back from the school!

Becles

I've spoke to the head.

He said the points scheme is something the dinner ladies introduced. He doesn't know how the points are awarded but he agreed it does seem unfair that the boys are getting such low scores for healthy lunchboxes. He said he would speak to the dinner ladies and ask how points are awarded. He said they hoped that by giving children with healthy boxes points, the ones with junk food would pester their parents for healthy food too.

He said he would have a word with my youngest today and reassure him, and also have a look in his lunchbox and praise him for it!

While I can see his point about encouraging the others who take junk, I'm still not happy about the intrusion as it's upsetting my children. They asked this morning if they could come home for lunches. It's not always possible though as I work irregular hours, and I think they would miss out on the social aspect too.

I'm also appalled at the double standard of encouraging packed lunch children to bring in healthy food while the kitchen serves up chicken nuggets and chips for the ones on school dinners :mad:

jellyhead

yep, that's the bit i don't understand - it's the school dinners that need inspecting, not the lunchboxes!!

elona

If the dinner ladies have come up with the idea of awarding points - then would it be very cynical of me to assume everyone with a packed lunch will be told that it is unhealthy - surprise,surprise - those on packed lunches are then on "healthy turkey twizzlers!!!"????

jellyhead

mmmmm .... you could ask the head outright if it's a ploy to get kids onto school dinners, maybe jamie oliver has caused a downturn in the number of kids eating twizzlers and the dinner ladies are worried that their jobs are at stake ?!

Love_Weddings

This isn't the first time I have heard about this I have to say, and I am really dissapointed that the school has taken this approach.

Personally, I think that for years now, no-one has taken responsibility for the rubbish which is served up to children by the school. The schools claim it's out of their hands as it is outside catering, the caterers say it's not down to them - its' down to the budget, and the teachers - well I haven't exactly heard many cases of teacher rushing into the dining room and throwing themselves in front of the deep fat fryers in protest against the dreadful foods which are being cooked and served to children.

However, I think educating children about what they eat can only be a good thing. I think however it should be intruduced as part of the lessons and could be discussions around what makes a healthy lunch.

I also think it would be prudent to actually communicate with the parents about what constitutes a good lunch box. I think education is the key here rather than making children feel somehow bad about the food their parents provide.

aliasojo

This may have come from a suggestion handed down from above? Our local LEA decides what the schools in the area serve and the schools themselves have little to do with the decisions.

Even decisions about whether the children are automatically given napkins or not, is an LEA decision. Our school hands out napkins if the child has something like pizza, but the rest of the napkins are usually behind the counter and children who have a sandwich for example are not automatically given one....although they will get one if they ask. (Does your 5 year old ask for a napkin???? Mine is too busy with her food to worry about such niceties, lol.) It's all to do with saving money.

The notion of encouraging healthy packed lunches is a good one, but if it has come from above and is not just a school decision, perhaps someone in an office somewhere has not thought through the side effects of 'lunch box policing'?

My daughter's teacher has commented in the past about the children's lunches, but casually...not in an official points capacity, iykwim.

I agree with Love Weddings above who says that communication is a key point. I think it's a shame that the kids are judged and awarded points on something that they have little control over.

Penny-Pincher!!

Morning All

I have just read this complete thread and am completely shocked by your schools attitude towards your childs pack lunch :eek:

IMO it sounds fine & quite healthy! Much healthier than most childrens packed lunches I know of.

My daughter is 10 and she has a packed lunch. She normally has;

Either cheddar, ham or marmite sarnies. Or a container with roast chicken chopped up with boiled rice/pasta. With the ham or cheese sarnies she will have a little lettuce(she probably bins this though..lol)
Has either a large banana or apple
Bottle of weak no sugar squash
Low fat crisps
Handful of raisins (smart price £0.35 & lasts for about 2 months)
Yogurt (low sugar)

I think this is not too bad and know many of her friends only have in their lunch boxes crisps, choccy biscuits & fizzy drinks! No sarnies or fruit etc :eek:

I think she eats pretty well. Breakfast is normally either toast & marmite, cereal, egg on toast, bacon sarnie. Always has a glass of either apple or orange juice. Dinners are normally standard food-roasts, shepards pie, toad in hole, spag bol, chilli, curry etc, all served with at least 2 veg. Rarerly have pudding but sometimes have rice pudding, yogurts, ice cream etc. If she is hungry when she gets in from school she will have a piece of fruit. She always has a large glass of milk in the evening with 2 cookies :eek:

Is she eating ok?

We are going onto Income Support in the next 4 weeks as im disabled and having to give up work as Im basically housebound, hubby is my carer. Daughter will be entitled to free school diners, but untill the quality and standard of food improves we will have to continue to pay for her packed lunches! Maybe they will give me the £8.50 per week they would have paid for the school dinners..lol????

Thanks All

Penny-Pincher!!
XXX

jellyhead

lol! spud was entitled to free school dinners when he started school, just for the first 2 terms then i got married, but i always gave him a packed lunch. he didn't want school dinners anyhow. as part of the settling in process the children who are going into reception go for a school dinner with their parents. i enjoyed it, i'm a chip shop fan and can eat fatty stodge until it comes out of my ears but spud wouldn't enjoy it.

the school office put a note in the school newsletter not long after i'd married, asking that parents notify them of their child entitlement to free dinners even if they don't take them as the school gets extra funding for free dinners children. they were a bit miffed when i said they could have had spud's name, they asked why i hadn't taken up the free meals and i said because they were rubbish lol!