I feel bad for the kids on free school meals

[thegasp]

Our school has sent out its plans for September.

Among them, only those children eligible for free school meals will be allowed to have school meals. Those kids will be sent to the hall for those meals.

All other children must bring in packed lunches, which must be eaten in their classes.

AIBU to feel sad about this sort of segregation? It feels like something from decades ago, when they might have sent the "poor kids" off to a different place. I'm worried about stigmatisation.

Is this standard, and going on in all schools?

Well, every child in infants is eligible for FSM. So what you’ll have is most of the infants & some of the juniors, I guess?

Ooh, that’s ill thought out! Surely they could provide school packed lunches for them?

Oh that's awful, Dd always had free meals but no one needed to know, this would have really embarrassed her and in all honesty, Id have gone without to send her with a packed lunch.

That's really disappointing. Not happening in our school, the hot lunches will continue and school is ordering extra trays as normally they are washed and reused. There have been hot lunches available throughout fot keyworker children and those who have been back in this month.

Oh, wow, someone hasn’t thought that through - schools normally go out of their way to give kids on FSM the same experience as those not.

A better solution would be for the school to provide packed lunches for the kids to eat in the classroom with their peers.

I’d feed back to the school.

Half the local school have free school meals, I’m not sure why that would cause embarrassment

That would easy congestion in the hall and allow social distancing

I would email, perhaps they haven’t thought about it or perhaps they know it’s not going to be an issue somehow?

Gosh I thought this sort of segregation was a thing the past. I do feel sad for these children. At my dc school we’ve been told that school dinners will only be sandwiches for now. I’ll be sending my dc with their own packed lunches because the school ones are rubbish. Those on FSM will only have sandwiches too which is terrible when you think this could be their main meal of the day.

Wow how massively insensitive.
I know the local schools around here aren't offering a hot lunch service, everyone will either have the choice of paying for the school packed lunch, getting it for free if KS1 or eligible, or bringing in their own packed lunch. I suppose the idea is anyone can pay for the school packed lunch so kids won't have the embarrassment of feeling singled out.

Goodness that's awful. Poor kids.

I don’t think they can win on this. If they send sandwiches into class others still know the school is providing food and some fsm children may not get a hot meal if the school doesn’t provide one.

Although surely it’s breaking the bubbles to send them into hall with other classes unless it’s staggered.

Idk my kids would be a bit jealous as they love school dinners

I don't think this has anything to do with segregation, it's a number thing!
They obviously cannot serve hot diners in classrooms, and if they take entire classrooms in lunch hall, they would have to stagger lunch time and use so much of the staff time, it really cannot work.

It sounds like the only sensible thing to do.

They are staggering break times

Yes it is shit. At our school there are only around 7 kids eligible for FSM in KS2. What a way of announcing a family’s financial status to everyone else!

I don't think this has anything to do with segregation, it's a number thing!

No one is saying segregation is the aim. It is the result, though.

what's the alternative? Realistically, in the middle of a pandemic, what else do you suggest they do?

DD's school is not providing hot meals at all, just sandwiches.

KS1 are all free meals so that would help with anonymity , at least at that age. Also not all pupils entitled-to FSM have them, even if their parents applied for them.

I get the school's reasoning behind it , less traffic,less meals and space needed, less cleaning etc. but it would've been more sensible and sensitive (to everyone) to say school meals in hall and packed lunches in class or outside if the weather is nice.

@JaniceWebster

what's the alternative? Realistically, in the middle of a pandemic, what else do you suggest they do?

No idea, it’s not my job to make those sorts of decisions for schools. It’s not happening at our school though, I know that for sure, so there must be ways around it.

It’s not happening at our school though, I know that for sure, so there must be ways around it.

I don't think you can compare 2 schools without knowing all the details. if the lockdown has proven something, it's how unequal and different all state are from each other! The inconsistency in .. well every aspect has clearly shown there's no such thing as a "state school" model.

I am not saying it's right, but even if I would be annoyed to have to make pack lunch every day for my kids, I don't think it's such a big deal.

@JaniceWebster

It’s not happening at our school though, I know that for sure, so there must be ways around it.

I don't think you can compare 2 schools without knowing all the details. if the lockdown has proven something, it's how unequal and different all state are from each other! The inconsistency in .. well every aspect has clearly shown there's no such thing as a "state school" model.

I am not saying it's right, but even if I would be annoyed to have to make pack lunch every day for my kids, I don't think it's such a big deal.

Well of course, but you said ‘what else do you suggest they do?’ as though there was absolutely no other alternative. We don’t know that to be the case. I would happily make mine a packed lunch every day if it would help. That’s not the issue. The issue is that those who are eligible for FSM are being identified, when schools often go to great lengths to make sure they can’t be identified due to the potential for bullying.

I don’t think it’s ideal but I’d rather a kid on free meals gets a hot meal than a cold packed lunch. I doubt kids that young will understand

I remember at the end of our whole school sports day an announcement came over the tannoy for all kids on free school meals to come and collect them... as you can imagine most were left uncollected! I was so angry at how it was handled. Usually as it’s all cashless system the other kids have no idea who is paying or who isn’t.

That needs complaining about

My kids are at an Academy where a huge % get FSM
yet there is still a lot of bullying about it sadly.
It's a pity as they are good old fashioned meals and plenty of it.
It is a pity that that cannot be offered to all kids regardless.
I've yet to hear what is happening, on that or anything else tbh.

I believe Govt is giving further general advice to Schools on 11th?