School complaining about dd perfectly normal packed lunch.

[Juk3]

The class TA came out to talk to me yesterday (from a distance) to discuss dd unhealthy lunch and the lunch box policy. The dinner lady assigned to dd raised it and the TA did say she wasn't in the class room during lunch so was just passing on info she had been given. She asked me to have a look on the website for the lunch box policy and try to adhere to it if possible, she was perfectly pleasant and I took my telling off but after reading the policy dd's lunch has not broken any rules. I try to make a variety of different lunches as I wouldn't want to eat the same thing every day myself. If I list yesterday's and today's lunch below could you tell me what's so bad about them as I just don't get it. I am wondering if the there has been a mix up with kids not that I will bring this up with school.

Yesterday:- grilled chicken breast with mayo on a mini wrap with lettuce, cucumber and tomato.
Carrot and red pepper sticks with a single serve pot of humous.
Pot of honeydew melon.
A tube yogurt.
A square of homemade shortbread.
A bag of sliced apple (she usually will have this at break).
Carton of juice

Today:- sliced boiled egg sandwich on 50/50 bread with crusts removed.
Pot of sliced red grapes.
2 mini cucumbers and celery sticks with a single serve pot of humous.
Small bag of mini pretzels.
A bag of sliced apple (usually eaten at break)
Carton of juice

She is 8 (9 in dec) in year 4 perfectly normal height and weight.

[quote twobrews]@LanaDelBoy
What's the thinking behind "no egg for breakfast"? Haven't heard of that before!

I'm assuming the child's allergy is really sensitive.
My DC could react from sitting next to someone who'd eaten peanuts or nuts for breakfast. It's how we knew he was allergic before he's never actually eaten them.[/quote]
Oh, you mean if it's on their clothes or hands? Or on their breath for example?
Really sorry that your DC has such a sensitive allergy - must make it a bit of a nightmare!

Back in my day we got treacle pudding, jam rolypoly, apple crumble, rice pud, lemon meringue tart, all sorts of puddings. Lunches were pretty stodgy too, or at least pretty heavy on the mash.
I don't recall any of my classmates being overweight. We did spend a lot of time running around outside.

Blimey my kids all went in with a white bread sandwich, packet of crisps, box of juice and a penguin and no one ever said a word.

Your daughter is very lucky! I had a mackerel sandwich and apple for my lunch or a cheese sandwich. Never had biscuits or crisps in lunch box so it was basic but healthy. Teachers should stay out of children's lunch boxes and focus on education instead!

If we can't see the school's lunch box policy, we are all just guessing at what could be wrong with your dd's lunch... not sure what else to say

Apart from those sound like yummy and healthy lunches!

@ZolaGrey

Well obviously you've provided a perfectly sensible lunch. I'd double check the policy to make sure there aren't any very strict rules (e.g. no juice or no desert). Like others have suggested houmous could be a potential allergen. DC's school allow it but my cousin's school don't as there's a child with a chickpea allergy.

@BalloonSlayer

Blimey my kids all went in with a white bread sandwich, packet of crisps, box of juice and a penguin and no one ever said a word.

I was at primary school late 90s/early 2000s and literally everybody’s packed lunch consisted of a sandwich, bag of walkers crisps and some sort of chocolate biscuit bar like a kitkat. Usually one bit of fruit thrown in (usually a banana) as an afterthought, not that it would always get eaten. The only rule was that we had to eat our (usually white bread with something like jam or choc spread) sandwich first before having the crisps and biscuits

Either the juice or the portion size?

Looks nice and varied to me!

I was once pulled up and told to make my DS packed lunch more simple. !!!! When I looked confused they said other children didn’t have lunch boxes like that and they didn’t think it was fair. ! The lunch box contained.
Sliced kiwi and grapes
I wrap with chicken
Youghart
Baby belle
Slice homemade carrot cake.
That was it.
I just ignored it and carried on as normal. To me you put in the box what you know your child will eat and is heathly too ( or kind of) just carry on doing what u are doing.

I remember DC's school confisciating everybody's penguin bars on a school trip when they had to bring packed lunches. Not the end of the world (although I pity the teacher who had to prise DS's chocolate from his angry talons ) but a little ridiculous of them since they arrange cake sales first thing in the morning.

It sounds like a great lunch box to me, Good grief, is this what schools are like these days, lunch box police, and a Mum getting pulled up on it.Such idiocy everywhere. !

This would annoy me, if the child eats their lunch and is not over/ under weight it's no one's business!

Sounds good to me. I would have a glance at the school hot dinner menu to compare and comment on. Our one serves fish and chips with a stodgy pudding and custard which always seems strange when you are getting hauled up for juice and fruit!

@LanaDelBoy

Oh, you mean if it's on their clothes or hands? Or on their breath for example?Really sorry that your DC has such a sensitive allergy - must make it a bit of a nightmare!

Yes. Thank you, thankfully for DS although he reacts it hasn't triggered anaphylaxis this way. He 'just' gets hives, itchy eyes and possibly swelling to eyes or lips if it's strong enough.

It must be the juice.

I was at primary school late 90s/early 2000s and literally everybody’s packed lunch consisted of a sandwich, bag of walkers crisps and some sort of chocolate biscuit bar like a kitkat

Yup for everyone except for me! I had bloody seaded brown bread mature cheddar and 'weird' (i.e. not iceberg) lettuce, some kind of healthy natural yogurt, fruit and occasionally a health bar which my mum tried to pass off as a treat . I begrudgingly admit it set me up with good eating habits but my god would I have preferred mighty white with cheese spread, a bag of monster munch and a penguin bar!

NotOfThisWorld I left primary in 95, with my (homemade) brown bread humous sandwiches & occasional slice of banana bread or carob crunch, pot of plain yoghurt decanted from a big tub, fruit obvs... everyone else had Wagonwheels, so jealous!

I hope it’s not the shortbread as ime schools give pretty decent sized cakes most days. Might be the juice I suppose but unless they tell you how are you supposed to know this is not allowed.
I would email school with your lists and ask what it is they object to.

Weird.I was expecting to read that you gave her loads of chocolate or something.Sounds perfectly healthy and balanced to me.

@borageforager

Yup so much jealousy! think I once used my pocket money to buy a kitkat and sneaked it in best lunch time ever .

They've got the wrong kid. Does DD share same name as any others?

If its the same as our lunchbox policy it will be the tube yoghurt, shortbread and juice. I ignore our policy everyday and I've had nothing said about it.

I work in a school and have supervised lunches before and your lunches sound delightful. Please email the school the two lunches and ask what the problem was. Hopefully you'll get an apology.
Honestly some children bring in a jam sandwich, crisps, a kit kat and a cake.

I wouldn't dream of even letting my children know what we used to take for packed lunch in the '80s and '90s let alone give them it!

Mighty White, pork shoulder (boak), Wagon Wheels, pickled onion Monster Munch, cherryade was standard. Fruit was considered a 'waste' as it got bruised and not eaten.

Apart from Fridays when lunch at secondary was 30p of chips and 'scraps' (double boak) and a quarter of cough candy twists.

I suggested to my dd that her brunch bar was a 'bit sugary' last week!