Jamie Oliver!

[paintitallover]

Well said that man!

twitter.com/bbcr4today/status/1579736618646220800?s=46&t=F6vE4kOinvkrdmLJVGHV4w

I'm not a big Jamie Oliver fan. He always seems a bit fake. Walking away from his restaurant business with a healthy fortune and letting other carry the cost while preaching morals is crap.
BUT, I really admire him for what he did about school meals. He was dead right in what he said and what he tried to do. But schools can still be obliged to provide healthy meals and parents who can afford to can pay. Surely when people have children they realise they're going to have to feed them. Give support to those who need it - don't they already get free meals? - and let the rest pay for their own children.

Won't she just.

Which European countries give all primary children free meals? Jamie does have form for sweeping generalisations turning out to be not quite true.

He is pointing out that those who need it are NOT getting the support.

To qualify for free school meals, you must, as a household, be in receipt of one of a few qualifying benefits, or on universal credit with an income of less than £7400 per year.

That is £616 a month. If your income is more than £143 a week, you will not qualify for free school meals, regardless of how many kids you have to feed, or how many other financial responsibilities you might have.

What JO is saying is that we can set kids up to succeed in life, by making sure they eat properly. Fed kids are happier, healthier, and more productive. And by setting the kids up to succeed, we're also setting teachers up to succeed. Kids who get decent meals on a regular basis are easier to teach. And it takes a small burden off parents, many of whom are already stretched to their limits. So give kids breakfast and lunch at school. It will make a positive difference to everyone involved.

I wholeheartedly agree with him. If we really want to 'level up' (I fucking hate that phrase, but anyway...) then we need to start with the absolute basic building blocks. Education is fundamental to success. And health, freedom from hunger, and access to a positive learning environment are key to success to anyone trying to educate themselves or someone else.

He doesn't say anything in the video about other countries?

His voice has changed. What's happened to his mockney accent?

@Georgeskitchen yes, and he visited a private nursery school in Italy and told the great British public it was a state primary and all Italian school dinners had to be organic "by law" which was bollocks and made me lose any respect for him in the same way I would for any politician lying to prove their (actually valid) point.

op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/6bc95ea5-4046-11ec-89db-01aa75ed71a1/language-en

Page 14 of this research report lists the countries that provide school meals, either free or subsidised according to parents income. From looking at it, France, Denmark, Portugal, Finland, Sweden, Italy, Slovenia and possibly others provide a subsidised or free meal service to all school children. In Sweden free school meals for all pupils to age 16 has been the law since 1997.

That report gives a lot of interesting stats on the benefits of free school meals too. Positive impacts on behaviour, lifetime earnings, long term educational attainment and access to university all correlate with access to school meals.

Thanks.
Jamie Oliver didn't mention it though.
I'm not criticising the need, incidentally, or the fundamental ideas he has- he's right.
It's the manipulation of fact he has been known to use to get his point across.
I hope he's right about the Good Ship Truss sailing away soon though.

I listened this morning and agree with every word. Thank JO for bringing attention to this.

Yes all children should get free school meals- the threshold is ridiculously low and it takes a considerable chunk of working parents income. Money that could go back into the economy. Children are guaranteed a hot meal, they focus better- it's a win/win imo.

Surely when people have children they realise they're going to have to feed them perhaps they didnt realise their rent would end up being 60% of their take home salary, or their public sector job wouldnt increase wages with the cost of living.
Why didnt all the sodding baby boomers realise they would have to pay for their own social care once old. Sorry but the only people that suffer when you use the argument, "your child, your problem" is innocent children!

Excellent post @OnlyFoolsnMothers, I couldn't agree with you more

Well said!

Whilst I agree with this, we really forget secondary schools.
your child starts secondary and you have to buy expensive uniforms, tesco is no longer suitable, expensive PE kits (for various sports), lunches, bus fares, laptops, phones for the apps they need, it goes on and on.

And if we don’t support children their outcomes are limited, they cost the economy more than if we had just helped them as children in the first place.

This. We collectively need to support all children, regardless of what their parents do or don't do. I am happy for my taxes to go towards this investment in all our futures.

So in your opinion a nurse and a teacher can’t have children? Or are you suggesting we pay them better so they can afford children with lots of disposable income? So only wealthy bankers can have children? No one who rents can have children? Also have you financially worked out what your rent will be in 8years time?
This might shock you but finances are hard for people on 40k with 1 child, not every cost of living crisis analogy involves a single mum with 10kids! Daily mail much?

i support free school meals from nursery through to 16- and I would pay for it by removing the tax free allowance of everyone (individuals not house income) earning over 100k

In Northern Ireland kids only get free school meals if their parents are in receipt of universal credit AND earning below a specific amount. Even primary 1-3 children.

Good for Jamie Oliver.

Are you also delighted when refugees drown when crossing the channel?

Those over 100k already get their personal allowance removed (between £100k and £110k) along with almost all access to childcare help.

That was at @OnlyFoolsnMothers

Another here who generally doesn't have much time for Jamie Oliver ,but I heard on Radio 4 this morning and he was excellent .
Theresa Coffey ,speaking later on the same programme was ,predictably,dire .She said
in my previous role as Secretary of State for Work and Pensions I’m aware that people could be earning over £40,000 and still be on Universal Credit,” she said when asked if she backed Oliver’s campaign.

But you have to have a household income of less than £7,400 pa to qualify for free school meals ,so WTAF !

And why was the interviewer (Justin Webb ? ) happy to laugh mately with TC over her phone ringing and not challenging her on this spurious anomaly?

None of this is the responsibility of the children who are brought into the world. The state can take away some of the consequences of the situation these kids find themselves in through no fault of their own, and give them a chance to learn.

For those kids who's parents have made bad choices, or failed in their planning, or been sideswiped by unforseen circumstances, or let down by partners, employers or the state, should we punish the kids by limiting their chances and condemning them to make the same choices through poor education and limited opportunity? That can't be good for society on the whole.

One of our local secondary schools announced this week that they would be providing all new intake year 7's with Blazers, Ties, Pe bags and stationery. Not sure how they're affording it but I think it's a good idea, they can probably buy in bulk and get a better price per item as a result. And because it's every pupil, there's less risk of poorer kids being singled out.