What's happened to Free School Meals provision?

[Carpathian2]

I've just had this from my child's school

That's loads of food for 5 lunches for a child!
What exactly did you expect?
Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner for the whole family?

Also not sure how you qualify for fsm but don't need them ? Thought that was the idea , some don't qualify and could really do with extra food
Could you not donate what you don't like to someone who might need it

@donewithitalltodayandxmas lots of people will qualify and they may not need them. It depends how much you earn. Everyone’s circumstances vary. A friend of a friend receives them and she’s a dental nurse part time.

It's five 200ml glasses of milk. Don't your children drink milk?

Of course. I didn’t think of it as a drink.

My post above comes across as really entitled and grabby, but I’m just putting myself in the shoes of someone who is really really struggling and a voucher would have bought them more.
Luckily despite being on a low income I’m not reliant on these vouchers, so this isn’t about me or my situation.

Hmm wonder which company got the contract for thE parcels? But it looks like a decent amount and balance of food for lunch.

also you claim you don't need the food and you only claim fsm so school gets the premium , and tour child doesn't eat at school or in day so you don't need the food,but you do take the vouchers when their on offer

MonktonMonkey

When my son is at school he has a hot meal every lunchtime - roasts, curries, bolognese, sausages, etc. This food parcel is nothing like that.

So cook him something! Ffs.
The level of entitlement/ingratitude on this thread is astounding!

The government have really put schools in a mess haven’t they?
THIS!
m wonder which company got the contract for thE parcels?
Probably the TA sent out at lunch time

Also not sure how you qualify for fsm but don't need them ? Thought that was the idea , some don't qualify and could really do with extra food
Could you not donate what you don't like to someone who might need it

So the only way you should qualify is if you’re living in dire poverty with empty cupboards/fridge?

[quote Carpathian2]@steppemum

They get more at the food bank! I'm not being snotty, but I think it's insulting to people who haven't got the skills to provide put those ingredients together to make a lunch. [/quote]
I think most people would have "the skills" to add cheese to a roll to make a cheese roll, or to toast a roll and heat beans to make beans on toast, or to take the lid off a yoghurt and eat it...if they can't work that out then a) they have bigger problems than a lack of food and b) what the fuck do they eat normally? Even microwave ready meals are harder to prepare than a cheese roll or beans on toast!

@funinthesun19 I never said that but its made out everyone who is on fsm can not survive without them, hence why we provided during holidays , and some who struggle don't qualify

also you claim you don't need the food and you only claim fsm so school gets the premium , and tour child doesn't eat at school or in day so you don't need the food,but you do take the vouchers when their on offer

My child doesn’t eat during the day? Where did I say that?

While in your situation a Tesco voucher would work better, there were plenty of other threads where people without cars were given vouchers for shops 2 bus rides away, which would defeat the object of the voucher.

The government scheme had a choice of about 8 shops to choose from, some I'd never heard of so I assume they were regional Welsh/Scottish/Irish/other area shops. For a while our local school bought vouchers themselves before the government scheme got started; a member of staff went to the supermarket in the town and bought gift cards.

@funinthesun19 and there are some on here who qualify who couldn't go without and it makes a big difference to
If you get something and actually do not need it , then can always do ate it to someone that does

Due to allergies this would be unsuitable for my DC,and dairy free cheese/milk is more expensive etc
Our church does food parcels and are getting increasing numbers asking for no cook/boil a kettle options as they cannot afford to use electric/gas for anything but light and heat(and for the record these are mostly families who have been made redundant)

I said I’m not reliant on the vouchers. But they do make a difference! It means I can spend more on food with them to free up cash for more gas and electricity or other essentials that can only be paid for with cash. I didn’t say I’m comfortable!

@funinthesun19 unless your the Op who has name changed I wasn't talking about you

Due to allergies this would be unsuitable for my DC,and dairy free cheese/milk is more expensive etc

I'd have thought they'd make special arrangements for specific dietary requirements like allergies?

I had a text about this yesterday, and school wouldn't let me refuse.

It didn't have milk, eggs or hard cheese
No rolls
No cucumber

Instead it included; A loaf of bread
Iceberg lettuce
Dairylea triangles
An extra 2 yogurts
Couple extra potatoes
Tins of tuna

They're only offering boxes every two weeks, so that's supposed to be the equivalent of £30 food, which it just isn't.

As there wasn't any notice that this was coming I had already bought shopping. The bread will go to waste as there's no space in the freezer for it. Ditto yogurts and lettuce as they wouldn't fit in the fridge.

One punnet of cherry tomatoes, three satsumas, four small apples and a bag of bananas will not last one week of lunches, let alone two.

We're a vegetarian household so the tuna will end up at the food bank once the pandemic is over.

If DC was at school she'd be getting a full cooked main meal, with a protein such as Quorn, as well as a pudding and a drink. Those are things I cannot replicate at home with that box.

The edenred vouchers could be used online for our shopping to be delivered, and I could pick things my child would actually eat.

To anyone assuming I'm a money grabber - my teen has in fact been off school since October to shield her, and we haven't received FSM in any of that time.

It wouldn't have occurred to me that anything was about to change now, except that school contacted me. I've just been making up the difference out of my own disability benefits, and school were very insistent when I said they could offer it to someone else in need, or absorb the cost back into the school.

It doesn’t even cover half of the vouchers they were offering before hand, which could of easily made a extra 5 or so meals with that £15.
I really feel for those who are desperate right now and were relying on those vouchers.

@funinthesun19 unless your the Op who has name changed I wasn't talking about you

Oops! Sorry!

@donewithitalltodayandxmas

Also not sure how you qualify for fsm but don't need them ? Thought that was the idea , some don't qualify and could really do with extra food Could you not donate what you don't like to someone who might need it

If you are a student then you can get FSM for your child, if you then stop being a student you keep the entitlement to FSM.

If you are on CTC then you can get FSM, if you later get a job and get WFTC then you keep the entitlement to FSM.

In those circumstances you might earn enough in a job so you don't need the tax credits but the OP states she has lost her job so the above presumably don't apply. Perhaps she had money saved up and so isn't iiving in poverty.

@parkpoolplunge ok makes sense well some people do really rely on these and will be grateful even for a parcel etc and like I said if you do not need but get , donate to someone who really it would help

[quote Chel098]@Liftmusic I agree.

I can understand how the government have stopped the voucher £15 per child will soon add up if you have got more than 2+ children so whilst it’s better for the parent it’s costing a lot of money!![/quote]
But school meals are £2.20 a day ? So not really costing more as Alf
Yes can’t bill buy to save money low the caterers can so £15 as a voucher or £2.20 paid to the school is the same really ..

6 school rolls and 2 baking potatoes and that isn't enough food for 5 lunches?? How much does your kid eat?! I know teens are growing etc but come on!