Do teachers really throw away homebaked gifts?

Sambucus_Nigra

Squoozy wrote: »

I don't think its the fact that some teachers may not use or consume gifts give to them by children that people (including myself) are objecting to. I think its the tone of some of the posts and apparent complete lack of appreciation for the thought and care behind the gifts that is really unsettling. I'm not only re-thinking whether I ever want to send in a present again, I'm becoming very concerned about the sort of values and ideas children can be learning in school from teachers who have such a low opinion of their pupils.

Eh?

You are becoming concerned about 'values' because people don't want to eat cake that might or might not have been made by kids who have no concept of hygiene.

You need a hygiene certificate to sell food so what's different about making it to give to people? The same levels of hygiene apply.

Get a grip!

Lilyplonk

I'm sure that none of the Teachers (or other school staff) who've posted on this thread intend any offence to be caused.

In the 80's I used to help out with School Fairs on the Cake Stall. I KNOW my kitchen was clean and that I followed Rules of Hygiene but one of my neighbours (who appeared outwardly clean) also used to contribute to the same Cake Stall. Sometimes customers would whisper to us 'Who made the cakes?' - I would never point the finger at that particular neighbour as she was a 'sort-of' friend, but I would just tell them which ones had come from MY kitchen and let them make their own choice .

All the posters have said that they're grateful for any presents given to them, it's just that they need to be very careful about possibly giving themselves stomach bugs etc. Imagine what would happen if they developed some kind of intestinal problem which then 'somehow' went around the school like the 'proverbial ...................'. It wouldn't be very fair on their other colleagues OR on the kids in the school and their families.

We ALL know how clean our own homes are - nobody is pointing the finger at anybody in particular - but they can't take chances with their own health and that of other people. And nobody can vouch for the kitchens of other people. Sometimes, they can look very hygienic BUT if the person who's doing the baking, whether it's an adult or a child, doesn't follow hygienic practises - then anybody who eats the produce is 'at risk'.

I used to work with older people and I made it a personal rule that I never accepted a cup of tea/coffee in any of the homes that I visited on a very regular basis. I would never have wanted to be accused of 'favouritism' but I just knew that some of them were none-too-clean, through no real fault of their own, in their kitchens.


Let's keep a sense of perspective on this - stick to buying tins of Quality Street/Celebrations/Biscuits etc OR follow that other brilliant idea of families clubbing together and buying a supply of good Tea/Coffee or new Coffee Maker for the Staff Room.

ash28

I used to take a bottle of decent wine for the teacher. Even if they don't drink themselves most people do some sort of entertaining over the Christmas and New Year period and I thought the chances were it would be used at some point.

I used to work with a guy whose wife was an infant school teacher and he said that his wife got loads of cheap toiletries, chocolates and nicknacks, so many they didn't know what to do with them.

I have made cakes for the school - red nose day cupcakes and a victoria sponge for the summer fetes. I have to admit that I do make a good victoria sponge and am quite often asked by friends to make one for them.

The first time I took one to the school, you had to put your contribution on the stage. I went into the hall to put the cake on the stage with the rest of cakes, when the deputy head came in and said "is that home made?", as he peered into clingfilm wrapped box. When I said yes, he took it off me and said "I'll look after that".

The cake never was on the cake stall - the deputy head had taken it to the staff room. The following year our grandson (lives with us) was asked to ask me if I could make a victoria sponge for the summer fete - I made one every year until he left - and they never made the cake stall.

I would never have given a teacher a homemade (or not) edible gift, I don't know what they like, whether they have allergies or a member of their family may have allergies. It's easy to see with bought stuff if there is anything you shouldn't be having, but it's a different matter with homemade.

tom9980

OH got a massive box of guylian chocolate last year never seen a box so big! she also got a very nice perfume both presents were worth £30 each roughly. She also got a set of mugs which were very classy and are well used now, thankfully no best teacher mugs this time!. Any home made gifts she had a good think about the parent/child in question and decided to try or not, in a number of cases though it was clear ingredients were not vegetarian so they got binned, no way in hell i would eat any of them and i am not a teacher. This is a nice 90 pupil 5 class school in a well off country village.

The gifts were obviously lovely but the gift she cried over? a letter written by a parent thanking her for all the effort she had gone to helping their child in a very specific way.

Other good gifts if you must right now would be clubbing together and buying tea/coffee for the staff room. Or maybe clubbing together as a school and paying the staff xmas lunch? from what i see at OH's school the amount they spend in gifts would pay for that twice over.

A better gift however is helping the school with your time and expertise around the school, fundraising and generally helping over stretched teachers focus on actually teaching. OH would LOVE a few parents to help her for trips, reading and especially as the school year ends she has loads of toys to clean and make hygienic again at the end of a year, she spent about 10 days in school during the summer holidays making everything perfect again and sorting everything out.

Budgets are being slashed right now and the government dont want you to know. 10k this year, 10k next and 50k the year after for OH's school they are likely going to have to shed support staff and have even less resources so maybe some vouchers for the school resources magazine they order from would be a very nice gift!

aliaslotte

At the schools I've worked at, parents would often send things in - like cakes. At those schools, the teachers [and support staff] had no problem in eating them lol; delicious they usually were too.

As others have said, it will depend on the teacher and the school. It is definitely a nice thought though.

2monkeys

Thank you once again for all your replys and opinions , it has proved to be a very enlightening and thought provoking topic.

I can certainly understand not wanting to take a risk if you feel the hygiene may be dodgy, with that in mind if teachers do not feel able to eat homebaking then my chldren will certainly not be purchasing anything from the cake sales regularly held by the school for fundraising (afterall if its not safe for the teachers why on earth would I allow my children to eat it!).

I think the surprising thing has been the fact that even packs of biscuits or chocolates aren't wanted, as a nurse I can tell you biscuits and choccies were always appreciated! Perhaps if you get too many instead of binning them, take them down to your local hospital and donate them to the staff rooms there.

No more teacher gifts from me now, how very moneysaving!

Thank you once again for taking the time to share your experiences.

tom9980

2monkeys wrote: »

Thank you once again for all your replys and opinions , it has proved to be a very enlightening and thought provoking topic.

I can certainly understand not wanting to take a risk if you feel the hygiene may be dodgy, with that in mind if teachers do not feel able to eat homebaking then my chldren will certainly not be purchasing anything from the cake sales regularly held by the school for fundraising (afterall if its not safe for the teachers why on earth would I allow my children to eat it!).

I think the surprising thing has been the fact that even packs of biscuits or chocolates aren't wanted, as a nurse I can tell you biscuits and choccies were always appreciated! Perhaps if you get too many instead of binning them, take them down to your local hospital and donate them to the staff rooms there.

No more teacher gifts from me now, how very moneysaving!

Thank you once again for taking the time to share your experiences.

So very sad you feel a person who spends so much time helping your child isnt worth more to you. Your idea of making cake wasnt a bad idea but for many very good reasons people have told you why its not the best idea (OH is a veggie, one child has a severe nut allergy). In fact there are cheaper and better alternatives available to the usual junk teachers get given available to you and some such as writing a letter/giving time are very much valued over a £30 gift for instance.

whitesatin

After a lifetime of teaching and taking home lots of (appreciated) gifts at Christmas and at the end of term, I would like to make a suggestion.

http://worldgifts.cafod.org.uk/

I have taken to doing this for Christening gifts etc.

2monkeys

tom9980 wrote: »

So very sad you feel a person who spends so much time helping your child isnt worth more to you.

My child has an ASD and we battle prejudices within the school and inequalities within the education system everyday, but thanks for making a completey baseless assumption about me, you should be ashamed.

Ladyshopper

pinknfluffy28 wrote: »

I too am now thinking i wont bother with gifts for teachers anymore. I worked with children for 11 years and was grateful for every single gift i was ever given, no matter who it was from! yes, i would only take a tiny bite from some of them, but i would never dream of throwing them away! I would also never dream of implying that us parents do not know how to follow the simple rules of hygiene... just because a child may have suffered with a runny nose, scraped knees, nits or chicken pox at sometime or another (and lets face it, whos child hasnt) does not mean that their parents are automaticly dirty and unhygienic! My kids love making homemade gifts, they are always supervised, and we take every hygiene measure possible. My dd got nits last year from school, but believe me, this does no way reflect how we live, and certainly does not make us any less "clean" than any teacher. sorry rant over, but i cant believe people nowdays can still be so judgemental and ungrateful!!!

Just because you take every precaution to be hygenic doesn't mean everyone does.

I am a police officer, and some of the houses I have been in would make your toes curl and you would need to wipe your feet on the way out (and that is no exageration). These are houses with children in.

I really don't blame teachers for not being the keen on homemade goods. I'm sure they do appreciate the thought and it must be very awkward for them. However, they didn't ask for a present, so not sure why they are then deemed to be ungrateful for having to a bit a bit picky about something they didn't even ask to receive?