School dinners

[Greenvalleysightseeker]

My DS is 6 and a good eater, he will eat until he's full and leave whatever's left. A few months ago he was told by a dinner lady to finish his jacket potato (they're huge!) and ended up with a stomach ache all afternoon. He was crying in the classroom about his stomach aching and the teacher told me about it at the end of the day. I spoke to him about it, and mentioned to the school that I didnt want him being told to eat everything on his plate if he's full and has eaten a decent amount.
Fast forward to today, I had a call around 2pm saying he had been sick at his desk and has come home absolutely fine, saying that he was told to clear his plate again by a dinner lady and had finished his meal even though he felt full.
Does anyone know what the schools healthy eating policy is regarding encouraging children to clear their plates? I know that appetites vary massively, and am sure that some children need encouraging to eat a reasonable amount at lunch time but surely they shouldnt be making children sick by forcing them to over-eat? Any wisdom or advice?
Thanks for reading!

Our school had an over-enthusiastic dinner lady a number of years ago. It took parents raising it at a parent chat session and the head getting involved for her to stop sending kids back to the table with food they disliked or had had enough. She wouldn't even listen to the other lunch staff. I'd wait until after Easter and ask the head to pass on concerns to the catering company about portion size, and concerns about how the lunch staff are handling issues with students who are otherwise good eaters.

Complain

As a dinner lady Op a full jacket seems excessive for a child of that age.Our school would do half a jacket with a topping or two such as cheese and beans or tuna.Not one of our 6 yr olds would ever eat a full jacket so we just do not do that. I would suggest dropping a note into school and say that you wish your child not to be served a full portion just a half,We take great care to address issues when we recieve directions from home.That would be my advice.With regards to plate clearing this no matter whar we do will 9 /10 never happen either there is no directive on this issue,Children are encouraged to try different food all the time even if it is a tiny mouthful,Mainly to open them up to new tastes and experiences,Some children have issues like not having food touching other food such as a pasta and sauce dish so we serve both seperately,Some children will eat veg but not salad so if we can get them to try a bit of cucumber or carrot baton then we will encourage that,Some children like broccoli but not cauliflour etc so we put the tiniest amount on just for them to try if they wish,Also as desserts follow every meal and are served with the main courses it stands to reason they are often tempted to try a tiny bit just so they can get to the dessert quicker! Ring school and i am sure they will help you,There is nothing worse than over facing a child at best its just a waste at worst it can create issues where non would have been which is good for no one,