Jam sandwiches at wraparound care

The food provided at wrap around care is just a snack, it’s not intended to be the child’s evening meal which you should be providing when you get home

I don't think that giving a jam sandwich is setting children up for a life time of issues, and it's better that the children have something than nothing.

When I was at school we had the tuck shop. For 20p I could get a bag of crisp and a carton of "orange" otherwise known by my dm as the "azo-dye hell" drink.
There was no healthy option. Crisps, brightly coloured drinks and sweets were the choice.

But, you know it taught a lot.
Budgeting - if I got the cheaper sweets I could get a liquorice Catherine wheel for 2p. Or if I saved my spare 2p all week I had 10p and could get a packet of sweets for the weekend.
Choosing what to eat: I remember discovering that too many fruit salads made me feel sick. Or that Monster Munch crisps stuck to your teeth or the wham bars were difficult to eat in a break time, then stuck to your pocket/bag if you didn't wrap them up properly...
That actually these things didn't really fill me up, even though they were nice.
And that having a treat at break made me feel better when things weren't always easy.

And, you know, my diet isn't wonderful, but I don't often eat a packet of crisps, a brightly coloured drink and sweets in my break at work. In fact, I'm sure I never have... although I have a KitKat calling to me from the cupboard currently.

I'm sure the children who are having the jam sandwich will learn too from having a choice, and they'll also learn from other things through school, home and friends.

We run the risk of making things so "healthy" that children won't know how to deal with a less "healthy" option. And that they will see food as a threat, a danger rather than something that it is nice to sometimes have a treat. And even a little treat every day isn't the end of the world.

Party food. Not after school every day.
Big difference between a sometime food and what school provides (which will therefore be interpreted by the child as a legitimate item)
I totally agree with OP. I have never heard of kids being given jam sandwiches in day care or as an after school snack. Two kids, years and years of day care, before and afterschool care etc etc. Cheese sandwich is fine, ham if you like (I don't), fruit, veg sticks, rice cakes, more fruit. That's it. At that age, you are setting up norms for children and they should be learning what a reasonable snack is.
It's not a party!

I’d suggest you either accept that this is what your child will choose to eat, find alternative care provision, or (if it’s that important to you!) rearrange your working hours to do pickup yourself. I imagine that changing up the food options will involve significant expense which would then increase the cost to parents, and if your child has a choice and isn’t making the one you wish then I guess that’s a conversation you have with your child.

If you’re teaching your child about a balanced diet then I imagine that involves making the best of what’s available, making good choices, and balancing out less than ideal options with better choices elsewhere in the week. That’s life.

Could just eat a jam butty now.

Unfortunately not all jam is vegan, some jam still uses gelatin instead of fruit pectin.

I'm not criticising your comment because if it is vegan jam then it probably is the vegan option, just wouldn't want someone new to avoiding animal products assuming all jam was safe.

You are not unreasonable at all. This really wind me up. I hate the way we feed our children nowadays, the lack of support from the institutions around us in providing a healthy environment for children. It doesn't really matter if hhe offer carrot sticks or not. Very few 4 year olds will choose carrot sticks if there's cake available.

The irony of ironies here is that there are alternatives available, it's just that the OP's child won't eat them 🫠

I used to work in a playgroup/nursery and remember coming out when the parents were there to collect them saying does your kid like jam and peanut butter? The parent said yeuk and i said they do now , as the kids were allowed to make their own sandwich
and yes yes I know they are not allowed peanut butter now incase of allergies

Nightmare parent

As a small snack? Really not that big a deal.

The equivalent comparison would be looking after someone else's child for 3 hours surely?

I might give them jam sandwiches if that was all they'd eat (especially if they were vegan).

Apparently it's ok if school does it though.

Now start a thread on giving your small child jam on white bread every day and see the difference in replies.

Ham is a Group 1 carcinogen. I would rather feed my child jam.

Yes, Jam is just sugar. Kids should not be eating so much sugar.

Really, I despair about what we are feeding our poor kids these days.

Full from all the jam 🤣

The jam won’t fill her. That’ll be the bread…… same as the ham or cheese one.

My daughter is 4 aswell and has something similar at wraparound care.

The website says something like a sandwich, a biscuit and a drink plus one more thing I can't remember what it is. Also my daughter has come home saying at lunch time they get cake and ice cream for pudding. I'm assuming this is low sugar or homemade or something.

I normally offer my kids sweet treats on a Saturday, so this has been a transition for us. Instead of putting it on the school, I've discussed it with my daughter and said that I want her to make the decision on whether she feels its a good choice or not, i just want her to come home and tell me if she has had something sweet ( without any judgement or anything.) Also then if she has chosen sweet puddings then I can monitor how many sweet treats she gets on a Saturday.

I think it's just a matter of realising we are not going to be able to police what they eat 24/7 anymore and as they enter school things are just going to be different. Gonna have to loosen the reigns a little and learn to trust that we are there to advise so that they can make good choices in life.

The jam will be spread so thin I really wouldn’t worry about it.

We have a few who are non-dairy so its honestly just easier. But you'd be surprised, our toast is very popular!

I’m genuinely at a loss to understand why you take issue with jam, but not with ham? Of the two, I’d take the jam any day.

OP is not a one-parent family. And moaners should put their money where there mouth is, I think. If you don't like the food provided at your relatively cheap childcare then do it yourself - that always works.😀

What part of the country do you live in where it’s easy to cover monthly expenses without 2 working parents?! Also, what if OP is a single parent and has to work. Mumshame much!

Heavens! How judgemental. Just because some people think jam sandwiches are ok and explain that healthier options will put up the price of WAC - which other parents won't thank you for and may mean some DC cannot attend anymore.
The British have a fairly relaxed attitude to food born of a wide ranging cuisine and good produce because we live on soggy islands that grows multitudinous amounts of grass on land that won't grow wheat. Jam sandwiches are TRADITIONAL, too - and maybe the WAC has access to someone who provides home-made jam or they buy good jam (not that matters that much because it is 4 small sandwiches a week). If I was subject to constant healthy eating at home I might well choose jam sandwiches - indeed, I am off to eat a low calorie bagel with some low fat cheese spread now - all this talk of jam sandwiches has made me feel hungry (but jam is so fattening and I don't think I have any - used to buy expensive stuff for late DH, who liked jam sandwiches (wholemeal bread, no butter - lactose intolerant) but it's all gone now...)
NB I brought my DC up on hot 'what the English insist on calling curries', and lasagne and pizza (all home made but not especially healthy, perhaps - DC all grown up and healthy).