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Original poster

Late lunch breaks?

41 replies

geminiflanagan · 30/09/2023 22:56

Dd is year 6 so we've been doing some open days recently. Of the ones who have made the timetable available, the lunch breaks seem to be incredibly late! The most recent one we visited doesn't start lunch until 1.45pm, and it isn't the only one. The other two were 1.30pm.

I mentioned this to the teacher showing us around, and she said most kids eat a substantial snack during their 20 minute morning break which is at 11.

Is this usual across all secondaries? Dd currently has porridge for breakfast, is allowed a piece of fruit as a mid morning snack, and then they do lunch 12.15-1.15 at primary and I know she is hungry come lunchtime time. It is going to take her some adjustment to shift lunch forward by an hour & half!

OP posts:
TeenDivided · 01/10/2023 08:01

Pre covid now my DD's school always did lunch 1:15-1:55 followed by 1 final lesson.

Cupofteaandcrackers · 01/10/2023 07:57

Ours do two lessons and form, then a break, two lessons then lunch then one lesson.
It's been like this since covid (used to have Lunches split into two, now its 3 -7 year groups in total). Dc1 and 2 had no problems dc3 hated it at first till she realised she needed slightly more for breakfast and then a snack. They honestly get used to it very quickly.

Yourebeingtooloud · 01/10/2023 07:41

Yes DD can eat at 11am or 1:30pm. She just spreads her lunch out across the 2 breaks, doesn’t eat more overall. I wondered how she’d find it but she doesn’t mind at all.

Maxus · 01/10/2023 07:26

My son's school I'd like this, 30min break at 11 then 30 min lunch later. The canteen serves the same food during these two breaks and you can eat your packed lunch during each of them. Most kids treat the 11 am break as lunch.

milkysmum · 01/10/2023 00:05

Yep same here. They have break at 11 and then lunch is 1.35 (30 mins) then 1 final lesson before finishing at 3.05. Lots of kids have a substantial snack at break such a chicken wrap as not always enough time at lunch. Then eat as soon as they come home.

Original poster
geminiflanagan · 01/10/2023 00:03

Oh and they all go on break together. Relatively small school - c. 900 pupils, so no staggering/rotating of times

OP posts:
Original poster
geminiflanagan · 01/10/2023 00:02

Interesting to read the responses! The school we are likely to.put as first choice is 13.35, and lunch is an hour break. Then they have 1 lesson afterwards and finish at 3.30.

And I agree, I'd be starving by that point - I wouldn't want to eat a massive snack at 10.30/11 (the girl on the tour said she normally has a couple of slices of pizza or a sandwich); it just seems bizarre to force a big mid morning snack in a short break to see them through to such a late lunch. It seems ripe for leading the way to disordered eating

OP posts:
MargaretThursday · 30/09/2023 23:52

My dc's secondary when they started had lunch at 1:30-2:00 and I thought how late and short.
The dc very quickly got used to it. However what I hadn't realised is that they also had a half hour break, during which all the food options barring one were also open, at 11-11:30. So some, like ds, would choose to have his lunch at 11, others (dd1 and dd2) would prefer it at 1:30.

Since Covid they've split the lunch times to have it at different times for different years to a certain extent though.

LolaSmiles · 30/09/2023 23:22

It's surprisingly common where schools have vastly shortened their lunch breaks and now different year groups on lunch at different times.
I've not applied to some schools because of it. I don't want my breaks and lunches at odd times each day.

I'd hate it for my DC too.

kamboozled · 30/09/2023 23:16

That's changed since I was at school! Lunch was around 12:30!

TiredCatLady · 30/09/2023 23:10

That seems really late - DN school starts at 8:30, 2 lessons then break, 2 lessons then lunch at 12:45-1:45 then 2 more lessons.

As an adult I’d be fully hangry by 1:45 as I don’t tend to snack much and wouldn’t want much at an 11am break.

BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz · 30/09/2023 23:05

Yep. Ours rotates so once every 5 weeks they have the latest slot which is 1.45 and only really lasts about 15mins.

Dd takes crisps and cereal bars in her bag which she has at break times if she's hungry

Sirzy · 30/09/2023 23:04

Ds school has 2 lessons then break at 11.10 (free toast and a range of other snacks to purchase) then two more lessons and dinner at 1.25 before one more lesson.

for ds (who is autistic) it works brilliantly as it breaks the day up nicely.

LouLou198 · 30/09/2023 23:02

Same for my dd. Lunch finishes at 13:50, and they finish school at 14:50!
Couldn't believe it when we went to the open morning - children walking around with bacon sandwiches and waffles from the canteen at 11am!
When they are up and have breakfast early to catch the bus, they are almost forced to have a mid morning snack to get them through. Not a habit I really wanted my daughter to get into really.

Russooooo · 30/09/2023 23:02

Normal. Every secondary I know of does two lessons then break, two more lessons than lunch, then form and final lesson. The one that starts lunch at 1.45 presumably has morning tutorial and only one lesson after lunch?

It’ll take a few weeks, but they’ll get used to it.

AnySoln · 30/09/2023 23:01

Yes one school had only 1 lesson after lunch.
Its not great for sen kids.