Banning birthday cakes at school?

[wildcoffeeandbeans]

I've just read that DS's primary school is no longer letting parents bring in cakes for their child's birthday because of the sugar content. :( This makes me unreasonably sad. I agree sugar is a problem in modern diets, but surely it has its time and place?

As a classroom assistant, I have to say, it's a real pain in the arse. Sometimes we get a small-ish round cake to try to divide equally between 29 children! Then, passing it out with blue paper towel but the crumbs still get everywhere. Not the mention the diabetic or coeliac children and allergy kids who have to watch everyone else eat cake.

chicken oh dear. I wasn't even expecting to be present for the cake eating!

YABU

We seem to have a cake fetish in this country. Take a cake to school, take a cake to work, bake sales every 5 minutes, cake programmes.

Cake has its time and place but it should be an occasional thing not an everyday occurrence.

I'm really surprised people have never heard of bringing Cake to school! We always brought cake to school! Birthdays wouldn't have been the same without a party in class! I had a summer birthday though so I only got one occasion to have my birthday at school , During my last year, when the calendar put school starting at early August. I didn't go to school in the UK.

There's already a ban on sweets of all (other) kinds, so no chocolates or Haribo in Christmas cards, etc

Are you saying it is (or was) a thing to put chocolate or Haribo into kids' Christmas cards? Wow.

So no cake just because the odd child may have an allergy

Yes. An allergy that could potentially kill them!

Teacher would be aware of allergy would see ingredients and not give to said child.
It's hardly rocket science.

Teacher would be aware of allergy would see ingredients and not give to said child.

It isn't a teachers job to deal with birthday cake or go through and check cake ingredients.

So everyone has something but 'said child'. Nice.

It's never been an issue.
Dd takes in a cake. Small class. Enjoy cake. Sometimes they even bake one there together

When dd was at previous school there was a form asking if they were allowed birthday cake type treats and any allergies.
Not their job no, but hey, a little fun now and then.
'Let them eat cake'

Why should the teacher be the one to say to said child, "Sorry mate, you can't have any"?
Any teacher worth her salt should refuse to have any part of it.

We had one child in our last class who was on gluten free. His Mum sent in a bag of suitable foods for instances such as this.

When the teacher I worked with baked cakes for Forest School he'd have one of those things if she'd run out of his gluten free ingredients in school.

Any teacher worth her salt should refuse to have any part of it

I think that's a little over the top, my teacher wouldn't dream of offending a parent with that attitude.

'Any teacher worth her salt should refuse to have any part of it.'
Wow
Dd's amazing teacher is certainly 'worth HIS salt' and manages to force himself to serve cake to his small class on birthdays.

Still
Quite

I think any parent who can't be arsed to cut the cake themselves (or supply individual cakes - fairy cakes anyone?!) AND bring in a supply of napkins should be turned away at the door and told to return when appropriately prepared. I'd make an awesome teacher 😉

Napkins are a must I agree.
I even do a paper plate

I stick with a cut up paper towel.

It doesn't actually happen that often, certainly not a weekly or even monthly event

Are you saying it is (or was) a thing to put chocolate or Haribo into kids' Christmas cards? Wow.

@minipie - it's common at our school, most Christmas cards have a chocolate coin taped to them, most children give out bags of Haribo / lollipops on their birthday. All this despite the school asking for books on birthdays and no food at the other times. I don't do it, but I'm definitely in the minority.

I detest the sweets/cake/toys at birthdays, Christmas, even feckin Easter - because then your DC want to do it too, and there's a ridiculous level of one-upmanship (what begins as a nice gesture of one chocolate coin in a Christmas card at the beginning of December becomes a wrapped cellophane goodie bag of candy canes and everything else by the end of term.)

I was delighted when they did this at the kids' school (I think they were concerned about allergies).

One less thing to have to do.

But when they did do it, we got a note saying 'you are welcome to bring in a small treat for the children to celebrate X's birthday. Please remember we have nut/whatever allergies in the class".

Agree with anyone else.
YABU to expect some poor teacher to have to cut a cake into 30 pieces every week - the mess, the time, finding a knife, coping with those with allergies, etc.,etc.
I can't believe this has actually been a thing, rather than it is an issue it is stopping.

Our school would give out individual cakes a the kids left to go home.

They certainly were not prepared to deal with 30 6 year olds creating sticky crumbs everywhere.

The national curriculum is massive, and the timetable is overburdened. No time in the day for cake and clear up. Sugar is a good reason, but I imagine it's the time pressure.

Always been banned at ours for allergy reasons.