Jam sandwiches at wraparound care

And then the evil that is Nutella !!

Lots of these comments are saying ‘but in France they eat this’ or ‘never did me any harm’, but schools are obliged to address food from a healthy perspective. And diabetes is on the increase world wide, as are cancers like bowel cancer, which is directly linked to diets. Just because something is ‘what we have always done’ doesn’t make it good.

They are providing a snack - jam sandwiches are fine for a snack. Give her a healthy tea with fruit as pudding when she gets home. It's not about whether they are providing a healthy meal in line with school policy, because they aren't school and they aren't providing a meal.

You were hoping they offer her a ham or cheese sandwich but think you "are very consciously educating about real food and do not eat UPF at home"
But you hope she is offered ham or cheese instead?????????????

It's unlikely they will offer peanut butter. Most schools are nut free.

Where's the money supposed to come from to provide all this food?

Correct and delicious. Don't forget a couple of churros every now a them.

Have you ever tasted school dinners?

What they call "pizza" or "cake" is not actually pizza and cake. It's low salt, low fat, low flavour and often has a bunch of weird ingredients chucked in to make it "healthy".

I’ve always found school eternally hypocritical when it comes to food - they police lunch boxes and yet serve utter shit on the lunch menus, breakfast and wrap around menus.

I would only be happy with jam being offered occasionally.
Wraparound care should only offer a small snack and water.
I would expect healthier and plainer foods including:
sandwiches - cheese, tomato, honey, peanut butter, marmite, banana.
crackers and homus, cheese, apples, ginger cake, orange cake, beetroot cake, carrot cake or chocolate cake.
pikelets or scones with butter.

Just ask for the jam to be low sugar, not regularly offered and combined with cheese.

Surely everyone knows it's a gateway drug to much stronger substances like peanut butter and marmalade though 🤷‍♀️

Most of the children and young people i have worked with with eating disorders, had parents that were food obsessed themselves. One even weighed every single meal even in the hospital.

This over focus on healthy diet, carcinogenic this, UPF, ‘chemicals’ and restriction will just create another generation of children with eating disorders. I’m not saying we shouldn’t be eating a nutritious diet with whole food blah blah. I do but if i fancy a bag of crisps i have them. It’s balance. Which most qualified dietician/people with actual nutrition qualifications advocate. High nutritious whole food diet with a small amount of what you fancy.

It’s a tiny bit of Jam and some bread, a four year old that’s been very busy in reception and then has to stay even later for after school care. It’s a long day and of course she will be hungry at that point. She’s four and hungry!! It’s not crack cocaine.

Just send in what you prefer.

If it’s cheap jam the % of fruit in it is likely very low. Even if they offered some carrot sticks and cucumber alongside it would be something. I don’t think it’s a battle you will win with the school though. I think maybe send in her after school snack.

It's not a double-standard - after school care is not part of the school day and doesn't have to follow the same regulations.

What “nasty” chemicals are you seeing in diabetic jam??

Everything is a chemical. I used to have a picture of a fresh strawberry with a list of its "ingredients" - would make weedkiller look beneficial if you assume every scientific name is sinister.

She’s not full from all the jam. That’ll be the bread.
You can’t decide to close threads on here btw. It’ll run and run if you say that just because 😀

I wouldn’t particularly like the thought of my 5 year old DS having jam sandwiches every day but if you have to use the kids club due to work commitments then it is what it is. 🤷🏼‍♀️ having ham every day most definitely wouldn’t be better so I’m not sure why you’d prefer that.

And your bar is unfeasibly high. Not high enough to exclude ham (carcinogenic) and cheese (saturated fat, salt), though. And if you say the amounts we’re talking about are too low to damage children’s health, and fine within a balanced diet, the same applies to jam.

I would give my child a jam sandwich over a ham sandwich every day of the week 😳

Ham is well known even by the NHS it is a cause of cancer. It's also processed of pigs eyes and arses.
I'd go for the jam. No matter how much you try to restrict your child of sugar and sweets, they will eventually eat it anyway later in life. It's also proven the more you restrict certain foods the more likely they will end up having worse eating habits later.

Surely the OP is asking if the double standards here are unreasonable? That a paid for service that is required to follow school policy, contradicts what the school tells parents to do? In which case, no, YANBU.

But a jam and butter sandwich is also the norm in France? Or a pain au chocolat?

That’s what we always had as the goûter and France is quite known for paying attention to their food. Or in my home country I bread with ham or cheese or marmalade.

What meals does she have in an average day?

It is the parents job no one else's no matter how people try and justify it 'my job is really really important' doesn't change it

Yes this!!!! You are potentially setting her up for a lifetime of food issues - it’s one thing gently trying to educate, but at age 4???!!

I am speaking from experience. I have had food issues all my life since being taught about the ‘importance of a balanced diet’ at an early age. Please don’t do this to her so early in life.

But parents can still provide something quick and easy - there are tons of quick, healthy options out there.