Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Only the apps you allow.

Meet the Other Phone.
Only the apps you allow.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

AIBU to think school dinners are too much (food wise)?

227 replies

DragonPies · 27/02/2017 10:33

There's always something like fish & chips, pie & mash, etc. and then a desert!

DD then has a dinner (around 6pm) and I feel like it's way too much. She's even getting a bit chubby.

I appreciate that I can stop school dinners (which I will be doing) but they shouldn't be giving kids stuff that could make them put on weight, surely?

OP posts:
Babycurls · 27/02/2017 10:45

The dinners at my ds school are ok. They do have a pudding and things like pizza and chips on a Friday, but they're small portion and puddings are low sugar versions.

Obviously I can't speak for every school but if school dinners were so bad then surely every single child eating them would be overweight?

There must be other children eating the same that aren't chubby, so are you 100% sure that you don't need to look closer to home?

blubberball · 27/02/2017 10:46

Also, is she running around and getting enough exercise?

Freddorika · 27/02/2017 10:46

If she's not fat then what on earth are you worried about??

HakeLively · 27/02/2017 10:46

If you are going to 'stop' school dinners as you say will you be telling your DD why?

Original poster
DragonPies · 27/02/2017 10:47

I'm worried that there has been an increase in weight. Surely you should just wait until they're 'fat' to begin to worry? Hmm

Yes, I'll be changing to lunches after this week.

OP posts:
Original poster
DragonPies · 27/02/2017 10:48

*shouldn't

OP posts:
Babycurls · 27/02/2017 10:48

What's her actual height and weight?

Freddorika · 27/02/2017 10:48

She probably needs to run around more and drink more water.

Hulababy · 27/02/2017 10:49

I work in a school and get a school dinner every so often.

At primary the portions are pretty small, smaller than your average kids meal out in a cafe or restaurant and smaller than what most people serve their children at home ime.

Yes there is a dessert offered daily and there is also an alternative or fruit. Many of our children chose the fruit anyway. However the desserts may sound like delicious heavy going sugar laden offerings. The reality is different - taste then bad you will soon see. They are not full of sugar and fat and they are also not a large portion. Infact most are fairly bland ime.

It is highly unlikely a school dinner each day (5 meals a week) will have that impact on your child. It's much more likely that it is that she is having a second full meal at home every day as well, and she will eat far more food outside of school than at home - 16 meals infact, based on her having three meals a day.

I would cut down what she has outside school if you feel she needs less - smaller portions rather than a second full meal each evening, and encourage more activity perhaps.

HakeLively · 27/02/2017 10:49

Dunno why i put stop in inverted commas!

If you really think she's putting on weight you need to look at what food is available to her outside of school dinners, as if struggle to land the blame on them.

Freddorika · 27/02/2017 10:50

Surely you should just wait until they're 'fat' to begin to worry? hmm

If she's not fat then there is no worry. If she's getting more solid it's almost certainly her body changing and it's natural and fine and don't restrict her food.

Hulababy · 27/02/2017 10:50

Also bear in mind that for a significant number of children this is their ONLY meal in a day.
You can easily adjust outside of home but we do need to ensure all children get at least one decent option a day.

Original poster
DragonPies · 27/02/2017 10:50

Run around more?

She has an activity every single night. Plays out with her friends until it gets dark, etc.

OP posts:
trixymalixy · 27/02/2017 10:50

YABU. The portions are tiny.

If she's getting chubby then adjust at home.

Pineappletastic · 27/02/2017 10:51

When I were a lass if we had hot school dinners we had sandwiches for tea.

If she 'can't' have a different meal to the rest of the family give her a smaller portion?

Or send her with sandwiches, if she 'has' to have a big evening meal this is probably your best solution, and you'll have better overall control to manage her intake/weight.

You don't say how old she is, but it might be worth having a good look at how active she is as well, this is usually half the problem.

WaitrosePigeon · 27/02/2017 10:51

They don't give that kind of food at my sons school. Pudding is yogurt or fruit.

HakeLively · 27/02/2017 10:52

Well then, she's having too much food (if she really is 'chubby'Hmm )

But she's unlikely to be having too much good at school.

HakeLively · 27/02/2017 10:52

FOOD.

Pinkheart5915 · 27/02/2017 10:52

Mine aren't at school so I've no idea about school dinners but I struggle to believe the portions are big enough to make a child overweight, it's like your pie and mash example it will be a small slice of pie and a scoop of mash that is hardly going to cause weight gain.

A lot of children are fairly active at break times and hopefully at home too.
Most parents probably don't give the child a huge meal in the evening, just a standard child portion.

Pack lunches are definitely the way for you to go just make sure you don't send a lunch that is bigger that the small school lunch

Freddorika · 27/02/2017 10:52

Is she running around in the activities or when playing wiht friends? Dd has at least an hour a day of physical activity including playing football in the park with her mates.

Hulababy · 27/02/2017 10:53

Just seen that she is 9. A lot of girls do increase in weight a little before puberty kicks in in my experience. Could this also be part of the reason? I know Dd did and so did most of her female friends. They are all pretty much tiny things once more, now they are teens.

FunkinEll · 27/02/2017 10:54

Do you not get a choice. At our school they give 3 x mains and 3 x dessert for example today the choice was beetroot brownie/ fruit/ yoghurt.

School dinners are very small portions:

my2bundles · 27/02/2017 10:54

Portion size are tny and I took my child off them as he was going hungry every day. I very much doubt your childs problem lies with the school dinner.

MommaGee · 27/02/2017 10:56

You don't have to cook a different meal just give her less. Does she clear the page because she's hungry or because you insist?
I doubt 5 little puddings are making your child slide into obesity.
If she's playing out till dark every night is she eating junk then?

Vegansnake · 27/02/2017 10:56

For some kids that's their only meal of the day..parents using food banks ,having benefits stopped for shit reasons ,need their kids to be full up at lunchtime as they can't afford much for meals at home..a sandwich and fruit wouldn't be enough in that situation

Please create an account

To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account.

Join Mumsnet Log In

This thread is closed and is no longer accepting replies. Click here to start a new thread.

Swipe left for the next trending thread