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AIBU?

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Original poster

To think these lunches are too expensive?

188 replies

EssieTregowan · 16/02/2017 12:54

My two teenagers are currently spending around £5 a day on lunch from the school canteen.

It's a cashless system and unfortunately £5 is the minimum you can set the limit to.

We've said they're not allowed to buy drinks from now on and take water in, so that should help a bit, but I wondered if I'm being tight. We can sort of afford £200 a month on lunches but it means making cutbacks elsewhere.

Do we need to just suck this up, or is this crazy money? It's only recent as DD was taking a packed lunch until a couple of weeks ago and DS has for some reason started eating more at school.

How much do your secondary lunches cost you? Is this about right or am I raising a pair of gannets?

OP posts:
cosytoaster · 16/02/2017 13:26

I allow £15 per child per week, I really can't afford more, if it gets spent too soon then that's tough luck and a good lesson in budgeting and they always have the option of taking something in (like I have to!) I think it would be quite easy to spent £5 though - the food isn't cheap.

MagicChicken · 16/02/2017 13:27

That is a ridiculous amount of money. You should set them a limit each per week and after that there's no more. It's up to them to learn to budget with it and if some days they can't have anything other than what they've taken from home then that's their problem.

Supplement their food with snacks and drinks from home - for example it would be completely daft to pay in the canteen for a banana or a bag of crisps or a wrapped biscuit. The canteen should be used for hot/fresh food that isn't cheaper from home and easily portable.

ohtheholidays · 16/02/2017 13:28

We had the same when 3 of ours were all at secondary school at the same time so I started buying drinks and snacks(from pound shops)for them to take to school with them I could get 4 drinks for £1 where as the same would be at least 80p each,it was the same with snacks what I'd pay between 20p and 30p each for was costing them between 80p and £1.20 each at school.

They still had money on the cashless system but me buying the drinks and snacks for them saved us over £30 a month

cathf · 16/02/2017 13:30

The minimum top-up at our school is £10, and that's what my daughter gets every Monday to last her the week.
In theory, she takes packed lunch Tue, Wed and Friday, and has lunch at school Mon and Thursday as - apparently - she can't fit her lunchbox in her bag with her PE kit Hmm
In practice, she blows it all on snacks and drinks by Wednesday and has to 'starve' Thursday and Friday unless she takes something from home.

seagreengirl · 16/02/2017 13:31

Yes Ds school has an upper limit of £3, but he usually spends about £2.50 a day. That gets him pasta with sauce and grated cheese and a drink. He is a creature of habit!!

I give him a snack to take in to have at break which keeps the cost down a little.

sunflower2008 · 16/02/2017 13:32

Is it the Parentpay system your school uses?? If yes then you can check what they are eating, as well as look at the prices of things on the menu. My two teenage sons also have a cashless lunch system at their school. I top up their lunch cards £15 each a week and thats more than enough. £5 each day is a lot of money.

CurlsandCurves · 16/02/2017 13:33

DS takes cash and it's £3 a day. It's more than enough and he likes to eat!

His school do a Meal Deal. Hot meal, pudding and drink for £2.35. Have you seen what your children's school prices are like?

Like others have said maybe top the card up each week and when it's gone it's gone.

Grilledaubergines · 16/02/2017 13:34

Seems quite high but depends what they're buying. DC do about £3 a day including a drink (in south east)

PlumsGalore · 16/02/2017 13:36

Mine used to get £2 a day but they are 22 and 19 now so £3 a day seems appropriate for now. I did used to buy bulk bottles of supermarket brand water or flavoured water and they took one of these from home too. There was always free water at school anytime in addition.

A fiver a day sounds like a gift!

SpeckleDust · 16/02/2017 13:38

That's too much IMO.

DD1's school has a maximum daily spend limit of £5 too which I would prefer to cap at £2.50.

I make her take packed lunch twice a week and check on ParentPay frequently to see what she has spent and what she spent it on. I also make a point of telling her I take packed lunches myself almost every day to work and treat myself at the most once a week to a £3 meal deal.

Maybe giving them the £10 a week top up would work so they have to budget within that and take much cheaper sandwiches/snacks/drinks from home at least a couple of days a week.

TheHobbitMum · 16/02/2017 13:38

My teenagers spend about £3 each day if buying from canteen, they don't particularly like the lunches so take packed lunches some days. If it's £5 each that's too much but £5 between 2 seems normal

Pinbasket · 16/02/2017 13:38

I had the same with my daughter, but settled on her taking a snack in from home and packed lunches every day apart from Fridays when she could buy lunch from the canteen. Saved me a fortune!

ofudginghell · 16/02/2017 13:40

We put £20 on dd cashless card system thingy when she started year seven last September and within 3 days it was gone all bar about £1 Confused
I sat her down and said it's not how it's meant to work as we were also giving her food to take and the money was for an extra drink or small snack on pe days etc so tried it again the following week.
The same thing happened again so I now don't put anything on it and she takes a pack up and drink every day.
It's a ludicrous amount of money for lunch when I have four pack ups a day going out aswell.
I can do pack ups for four people for five days on less than what one child was spending in five days.
It was a no brainier for me Smile

Also dh nearly had a coronary when he worked out £80 a month for one child for lunch plus the extras she was taking and not including anyone else HmmSmileGrinWink

wishingona · 16/02/2017 13:45

Yes it's ridiculous. They can have a packed lunch!

WorraLiberty · 16/02/2017 13:46

Too much imo

Mind spend between £2.20 and £2.50 per day.

They also take a bottle of water with them.

happypoobum · 16/02/2017 13:47

My teens made their own packed lunches. Saves money and they can't complain about what you have made.

NatalieRushman · 16/02/2017 13:48

Does the school have a way for you to check how much lunches cost? Around here, lunches unfortunately really do cost between the 4-5 pound mark.

yomellamoHelly · 16/02/2017 13:48

Ds's school is £2.20 for a lunch and (basic) drink. Though they can also choose crisps, much nicer drinks etc.... I can also see what he's buying with that money. £5 is too much. If it were for me and even if I were working I would feel that was too much to be spending on my own food.

GinasGirl · 16/02/2017 13:49

I had to have a chat with my middle DS as he was flying through the money for school lunches. I had a look on parentpay and it was because he was buying snacks and drinks as well as lunch.
He now takes in a water bottle and something for snack from home and spends about £2.50-3.00 which is better!

F1GI · 16/02/2017 13:49

I think you've done the right thing cutting out the drink buying.

Are you sure your dc are not subsidising their friends, racking up £5 seems a lot.

Mamabear14 · 16/02/2017 13:51

Mine spends around £3-£3.50 a day depending if he has a hot chocolate at break too. I normally chuck a tenner at him on a Monday and tell him to tell me when it's low and top him up. I think £15 a week is about right.

HermioneJeanGranger · 16/02/2017 13:51

£200 is my budget for two adults and two cats for a MONTH. Including lunches, cat food/litter, toiletries and cleaning stuff.

I would be telling them to take packed lunches from now on!

Garnethair · 16/02/2017 13:51

I used to foster a teenager who had £5 a day on her lunch card. It turned out she was buying her friends lunch in exchange for cash.

wishingona · 16/02/2017 13:52

I mean do you all spend £3 on your own lunches? Does no one eat packed lunched anymore? Everyone in my office does.

lottieandmia · 16/02/2017 13:53

It's too much - my 13 year old dd doesn't spend more than £2 a day and I don't tell her how much to spend.

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