McDonalds and a school trip...

[azteccamera]

Truly wondering about this situation.

Long, hot day. School trip. Reception class so 4 & 5 year olds. Left at 8.30 this morning. Due back at 4pm. Finally arrived back at 6.45pm after the bus broke down on the way home. The school were communicating by text all the way through the afternoon keeping us updated.

We've just picked up the children to be told they have been fed... McDonalds. Personally, I don't mind, better that she is fed, watered and it was next to where they had broken down. Bear in mind they were waiting in a hot bus with no aircon for a replacement coach.

However other parents were shouting at the head teacher,for everyone to hear. Apparently no one ever feeds her children mcdonalds. They've never had it. Thinks it's a disgrace. Some of the dads were also agreeing.

Would you mind? Allergies and food intolerances and preferences accounted for, would you be angry enough to shout at the teachers about it?

TightMcTight, we wondered if they were close enough to collect but I think they were around an hour away at the timeout breaking down (trip was about an hour and a quarter to the port then a short ferry journey)

I suppose they kept thinking they would get going soon and in the end a replacement coach was sent.

Teachers and children all looked spent when they got off the coach!

Why is it such a badge of honour to proclaim I've never eaten McDonald's in my life and neither have my DC
It's a piece of meat in a bread bun. Get over yourselves.

I bet!

Teachers are magic but they can't pull flapjacks and bananas from their arses I'm afraid.

Really rude of the shouting parents.

What Floggingmolly said ^

I can't imagine ever shouting at my DC's teachers for anything though, especially not for having the audacity to feed a hungry child.

macdonalds are fabulous for allergies... detailed sheet, offer to make stuff up sepcially, find out which component part contains the allergen.

I prefer not to feed the children mcdonalds (or any other fast food), but as they are fabulous with allergies I know I can feed them in an emergency.

I've not set foot in McDonald's since I was a child, never spent my own money there. However I would have been grateful that the teachers had looked after the kids, to the best of their ability, in a difficult situation. Would those shouty parents have preferred their children go without food or even a drink while waiting for hours on a hot bus with no air-con?

I hope some of the parents said thankyou to the teachers, and make them feel like their efforts hadn't gone unappreciated. hopefully that will shame the ungrateful parents

McDonald's is one of the cheapest things available at a service station and most children will eat it. The only problem I really see is no provision for vegetarians or food intolerance.

I quite like a motorway journey as it's as good excuse to get as KFC.

And I would offer to pay.

Poor teachers. They had obviously had a horrendous day and done the best they could for the children.

I don't think mine had eaten at McDonalds at that age either, but I'd have been bloody grateful if they'd come home fed after such a stressful day.

Perhaps someone should have home to
Waitrose fir some hummus and breadsticks

Well done to the teachers for looking after the kids so well and feeding them in such a difficult situation. I would not be complaining at all. Must have been pretty stressful. McDonald's might not be nutritious but they got fed and watered and I bet it cheared them up too.

This happened to my children once. It was at the end of a week long residential trip.

The coach did not break down, but the driver was coming to the end of some of his permitted hours, and was obliged to take a break at the next service station (South Mimms). It meant that they would be very late back at school, so the staff organised burgers and chips for the children.

No parent batted an eyelid when they got back to school. Not that I heard anyway.

I think that those parents the OP heard shouting at teachers were very unreasonable to be honest. Probably far worse behaved than their children.

Sidthesausage

Obtained from where exactly?

I'd be darn grateful that the teachers had fed the children.

Some people are every rude and very ungrateful They'd have been complaining whatever the school had done. The HT should have cut them off to be honest and then publicly thanked the staff in front of them.

McDonalds bashing is ridiculous. A lot of the food isn't actually bad at all and they are very accommodating and also good for people with allergies. It''s also not expensive, especially when buying several meals, and is fast.

OP - if you are happy with what they did, how about sending in a thank you note tomorrow morning. Might make all the difference to some of those tired, fed up teachers in the morning, esp after hearing complaint earlier.

FloggingMolly - I don't buy their food etc because I think it's over-priced, highly processed, over-seasoned, homogenous. I dislike their treatment of their staff ( in some branches that I have heard personal accounts of), & I think their environmental principles are short-sighted, to put it politely. But if it was that or let DD go hungry/thirsty, I wouldn't hesitate. And I wouldn't be ungrateful if someone else bought DD some in a aituation like theis either. Can't believe people had the audacity to shout at the teachers!

McDonald's have healthy options nowadays, though don't they?

Can't see what the issue is

A plain kids burger, carrot sticks and water/orange juice/ innocent smoothie?

Come on!

What did the kids actually have? a large Big Mac meal with and ice cream, 4 donuts and large coke each????

My 5yo has not had McD because I think it's crap food.
In this situation though better crap food than no food.
I wouldn't have complained. That's a bit out of order.

DS would only eat the chips as he is an odd bod who doesn't like mcdonalds food but I would rather he had that than nothing, and in a situation were we had broken down and there was no other alternative that is exactly what I would do.

other mum needs to get over herself, she is going to find the coming years very hard if she is going to be quite so uptight about what she does!

On a side note I bet the staff love getting an order for 30 happy meals!

SugarMouse1 - DD who is 4 was pretty tired when she came in so not a greatly reliable witness. All I could get out of her was that she had chips and milk from McDonalds. Not sure about burger/fish fingers etc.

Those parents seriously need to get over themselves.

My DD has only had McD's once (with her father) although she can recognise the Starbucks logo at 3 yo to my eternal shame and I would also prefer fed, watered children to hungry ones.

What did the shouty parents want them to do?

When we used to take Year 6 to London for their residential trip we would always plan to stop at McDonalds on the way home and parents gave the children money for it.

No-one ever complained!

FFS Mcdonalds isn't poison.

A Happy Meal is just over 2 quid and includes a drink - where else can you feed a child (whilst out) for that ?

Ok so a Maccy isn't the best nutritionally balanced meal,but then again I'd doubt there is any parent on the planet who can claim everything that has ever passed their precious DC's lips is 100% nutritionally perfect.