Is this really healthy enough for a child to have every day for lunch

[Coconutcheese]

One of my friends is a childminder - I pop round every so often maybe 3/4 times a month and every time without fail the kids she takes care of are having the same lunch she calls it a ‘picky plate’ it consists of
for the baby - baby puff crisps , grated cheese, banana and some yogurt and for the older children baby puff crisps, cheese, ham, banana, strawberries , raisins and a small yogurt.

I said to her ‘is that enough don’t they get hungry ?!’ She said no it’s plenty as she always does a proper tea (a casserole or pasta or chunky veg soup and bread) but it just doesn’t seem that good for a childcare setting or is it more strict for nurseries (do childminders need to have a menu for each week ?)

Edited to add as I forgot to include the important bit that she told me it’s what they have every single day as it’s quick and easy

It’s really not good enough.

Once a week as a treat could be picky lunch with all the puffs and crisps and raisins.

The rest of the time the lunch needs to contain whole foods like raw veg, some brown carbs and some proper protein.

It's not the perfect lunch but it's not awful either - three types of fruit (banana, strawberries, raisins) plus some "picky bits" is hardly the end of the world, especially when she does a proper cooked dinner.

Kids at that age are fussy and she probably prefers that they eat what they're given rather than having most of it end up in the bin and the kids complaining of being hungry.

If it's anything like our childminder, they will also have had breakfast (maybe at home), toast after the school run, possibly a snack, that plate of food, afternoon snack, tea then pudding. I imagine that any hungry kids will make it known they want something else.

Could it be better? Yes. Has she found something that all the kids will eat, that she can prepare with minimal effort so she can still look after however many kids she has to deal with? Probably. As a parent, with a child in a childminder but not every day, would this bother me? No, I worry more about the quality of care and her feeling cared for while I'm not with her, by someone who has looked after her several days a week, while she's still small. If I was that bothered about food, I'd send a packed lunch.

Everyone saying it's awful - what do you think kids get fed at nursery or primary school?!

Could do with some carbohydrates with the lunch and no ‘baby puffs’ daily. Sounds a bit boring to have it every day. But ok in rotation with some bread added.

Its all very well to say it should be x, y or z but that doesn't mean the children will eat it. It also doesn't mean it's easily transportable, one of the perks of a childminder is that usually they are out and about rather than stuck somewhere with a fridge/cooker. The dinner sound balanced and the children might not even be in every day; I'm sure the parents are aware & would say something/send in a packed lunch if they weren't happy. Honestly nursery meals aren't always the height of health and balance.

It’s not great but presumably the parents are ok with it. I’d expect something more substantial and varied.

our nursery was wonderful for food - hot meal with pudding every day and everything was homemade. It’s definitely a factor in choosing childcare.

This sort of food for lunch? Allowing people around for coffee? 🤦🏻‍♀️ Luckily my son goes to nursery...

Boring can be good for kids though - they know what to expect and when, so there are no tantrums when they don't get X or because Josie has Y.

I read loads of threads on here where kids have the same packed lunch everyday because it's what they'll eat.

I'd expect to see some carbs

It's not even recently. It's been long known that processed meats are carcinogens.

@catelynjane Unless a child has SEN boring is definitely not good for their eating habits. Offering children the same thing every day, particularly if these are their safe foods (I.e the ones they'll surely eat), is the best way to raise a picky eater. Kids need repeated exposure to variety, including things they don't like, to have a healthy relationship with food and not become picky.

Isn't that the job of the parents, though, not a childminder?

The lack of carbs would be the only thing that would really bother me.
Kids like eating the same thing every day. My kids have eaten the same packed lunch every single day since they started school. If I ever attempt to deviate from that lunch they complain and won’t eat it. So I don’t bother. I’m sure they’d happily eat the same dinner too if I didn’t fight them over it

I'm more concerned that she's allowing you to pop round there.
I don't think she should.
If she was looking after my child I'd be furious that strangers were visiting. The lazy meal would be secondary to this massive concern.

Is she meant to declare me somehow then? What is the process ? I’ve had a dbs so surely it would be straightforward that she can just say she sometimes has visitors ? Her adult dd pops round too sometimes I thought it’s that home from home type environment that makes people choose a CM ? Just day to day things like visitors/ running errands as well as structured educational things etc ? Or maybe I’m wrong I don’t know much about it

Just had a google it’s fine for me to visit (and her adult dd)

@catelynjane If you're a sahp then yes, it's your job. If your child attends nursery/CM it's obviously their job as well. Eating habits are not formed just inside your own house...

But if you read the entire post, she cooks a different, fresh evening meal everyday - it's just lunch that's the same - presumably because it's quick and convenient and she knows it will be eaten.

I actually don't agree that it's the job of a childminder to make sure your child has access to a huge variety of different foods. It's their job to feed your child and give them healthy options, but that doesn't have to mean loads of variety or choice 🤷‍♀️

@catelynjane Well, you're entitled to think that. It's not what child feeding specialists advise though, as the exposure needs to be consistently varied, in all settings.

Anyway, that's one of the many reasons I wouldn't send my child to a CM.

The hate for childminders on this website is unreal. I’m sure your friend who invites you over is thrilled that you’re slagging her off online.
It’s so hard to strike the right balance as a childminder - balance what your spending vs time vs what kids will eat. It’s all good and well preparing a grain salads with avocado slices and sweet potato cubes but if your just chucking it in the bin everyday - your literally throwing your small profit away (not to mention unpaid cooking time), in search of what? If you know the kids like apple slices, cheese, crackers and cucumber what’s wrong with that? It’s hardly a McDonald’s happy meal everyday. You should see some lunchboxes parents send in if you think that a picky plate lunch is bad.

I think it's okay to have the same thing everyday for lunch - this is quite common.

There's nothing that filling though. Needs some sort of carbohydrate, would be easy enough to put the ham/cheese into a sandwich or wrap. Personally I'd swap the ham for chicken as I wouldn't eat cheap processed ham daily.

My 4 year old has blueberries, a satsuma, a banana, a large yoghurt, a sandwich, sliced cucumber, carrots and peppers, crisps and a soreen. Not the healthiest I know but I'd rather her eat than not eat. Nursery also provide snacks. I assume your friend is also giving them snacks? Do they eat all their picky plate?

I don't think baby crisps should be given. Nil nutrition surely. Chicken not ham and toast should be a feature.

My son was very fussy at the childminder and would only eat toast or noodles!

Looks fine to me

Five meals a week of the same foods isn't going to cause an issue 🤷‍♀️

The childminder cooks a different, fresh, healthy meal every evening. There's also breakfast (which isn't mentioned), snacks, whatever is fed at home and all the meals at weekends.

As an aside, when I used to eat in the staff canteen, everyone there would bring pretty much the same meals in day in, day out. It's very normal.