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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Rubbish from luchboxes!!!!

114 replies

star007 · 11/01/2011 12:01

AIBU to expect the council/school to provide bins for my children to through away their lunch box rubbish???
The council has sent an email to all schools in our area telling the heads that children who have sandwiches for school have to bring all their rubbish home with them in their lunch boxes. This is doing my head in as I have 3 children (youngest is only 4) bringing home disgusting, dirty yoghurt/apple juice spilt lunch boxes!
It's winter now and the luch boxes are yuck by the time the hot weather comes they will be rank by the time they get home!
AIBU to think that a bin isn't a luxury item more of an everyday essential item????

OP posts:

MrsNonSmoker · 12/01/2011 11:45

When we moved to my DCs' current school unbeknown to me they had this practice, everything gets shoved back in, open yoghurts, open drinks etc., at the time DD2 was 5 she had no idea how to handle it, but now we know to include little plastic bags or containers for rubbish. But as I say, first off we had no idea and no one said anything so, feeling "surely not" sort of incredulous, I wrote a quick note to teacher asking what the policy was and what they normally told children to do (cos I thought maybe my children being new didn't know where the bins were?)

This was apparently met with total incredulity by staff including deputy head who discussed the note in front of my children, ridiculing me for being a "stupid woman". Hope they never have to come to my house and ask where the bin is ...

ClenchedBottom · 12/01/2011 12:01

"In the same way this policy from the council/school is not showing them to clean up after themselves or look after their belongings. Thank you." - star007

But you've already said that your DC empty their stuff into the bin when they come home??? So they are cleaning up after themselves???
Tbh, I think it's a good idea to bring stuff home for all the reasons outlined by so many other people already, and also that if we take the longer term view, we want to discourage a 'lots of rubbish, straight in the bin with it all' approach.
I really can't see the big issue here, sorry.

mangoandlime · 12/01/2011 12:05

In six yrs of making and emptying packed lunch boxes, this has never bothered me at all. I like to see what's been eaten. The eldest empties his own box after school now. It's hardly the worst chore in the household. A wipe over and all ready for the next day.

VivaLeBeaver · 12/01/2011 12:07

DD's school has always done this and I don't have a problem with it. It lowers their refuse collection bill so the school has more money to spend on education. I can see if DD has eaten all ehr lunch. It takes 10 secs to put any rubbish in the bin and then put the lunch box in the dishwasher.

Its all positives as far as I can tell.

monkeyflippers · 12/01/2011 12:52

Don't see what the big deal is. It also teaches kids to take their rubbish home with them as a general rule for when they are out and about.

If doesn't take that long to empty a lunch box and lets you see what they have eaten.

doley · 13/01/2011 03:27

I am in the States at the moment when they 'pack ' all the rubbish goes in to a BIG fat bin -along with the trash rubbish from the school lunch !

I don't think you are being unreasonable at all .

I was so happy when the lunch-boxes return home EMPTY +cleanish lol .

I think this is not something that will change though ,it is a typical British thing to happen IMO !

Love the UK and am moving home (in case anyone thinks otherwise )

I also agree that the kids that eat school dinners are not given a doggy bag to display leftovers to their parents, so ....

Fenugreek · 13/01/2011 03:45

Lol @ some of you panicking about keeping sandwiches cool during the 2 week British summer. I live in Dubai where it reaches 50 degrees for months over the summer. Right now it's winter so we're down to low 20s. My 4yo manages to take her packed lunch to school with an ice pack. She also packs her leftovers so it's not a horrid mess when she gets home and I can see how much she has eaten.

differentnameforthis · 13/01/2011 05:40

My children scrape their plates after meals at home and I feel they are more than capable to put food waste into the food waste bin in school

Then they are more than capable of emptying their lunch boxes at home & rinsing them, no?

Dd, 7 does that if she has a messy lunch box. Most other times if I know she is likely to get messy I put a cheap freezer bag in there for all her rubbish.

And believe me, her lunch box is rank after a 40 degree day!

differentnameforthis · 13/01/2011 05:45

everything else that can leak or is food should go in a bin [at school]

A lot of children don't aim that well when throwing stuff away. Or drop stuff on the floor on the way to the bin. This has the potential to leave juice/yoghurt on the floor, causing a slipping hazard. Not forgetting a horrible wet mess in the bottom of the bin - who gets to clear that up?

Also, YOU are being expected to clear away the remnants of what YOU send your child to school with. Fair enough, I say. If you don't want to clear up a mess, don't send [potentially] messy stuff in with them.

differentnameforthis · 13/01/2011 06:00

To me in school one food waste bin (which is there anyway for school dinner children) and another bin for all other rubbish

That's not going to happen tho, is it. The food & rubbish will be mixed up. Is this really a new thing? I remember taking all my packed lunch rubbish home with me (from primary) & I am 37!

Also, some schools get rubbish collections each fortnight, can you imagine the stench of having to keep 14 days of food contained for a whole school? We had rats at our highschool that climbed in the huge dumpsters because they wouldn't shut, because they were too full of bags of left over/waste food from lunch time. And we had weekly collections!

Seriously OP, I can see more than just the money issue here as to why they don't have bins!

RantyMcRantpants · 13/01/2011 08:19

I have invested in a load of THESE and use them to put raisins from big bags in, decant yoghurt from a big pot into etc. (In summer/autumn I use fruit from the garden. I freeze any glut and use later or buy the bags of frozen fruit when on offer.) I have bigger ones for things like popcorn or fresh fruit salads etc. Because they are in resealable pots there is little or no mess and less rubbish to go into any bins :)

Oh! and for sandwiches I have saved take away continers and use those, perfect size

IAPJJLPJ · 13/01/2011 08:20

dizzymac and my children do the same (put rubblish into food bag) and my ds has done this since reception

RantyMcRantpants · 13/01/2011 08:23

Sorry, the fruit goes into the yoghurt to make raspberry, strawberry, blackberry yoghurt etc.

Serendippy · 13/01/2011 09:15

YANBU but I can see why the school do it. How about agreeing to take all rubbish with a good grace if the school provide a compost bin? That way you will not be sent home rotting fruit and can use containers for the rest of the stuff.

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