What's happened to Free School Meals provision?

[Carpathian2]

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

My two teenagers qualify for FSM as I am their Carer. They get a big hot meal and pudding at school. Rural, Northumberland, cold, they need it! In the last lockdown we were given vouchers instead, which was very helpful. I hope it doesn't change to parcels as we live 20 miles away from school. I cant afford a 40 mile drive and I can buy and cook hot lunches with the voucher. (Cold at home too)

Sadly in our area they were being sold for less than their value. It is a way of making sure there is food in the house. Yes - most parents make the right choices for their children but not all. Schools cannot afford to pay twice - voucher and usual food provider.

@Graciebobcat

Is anyone on Twitter, and could tweet Marcus Rashford about this? I'm sure he intended for the government to pull their finger out on this and provide vouchers and not for schools to be putting together food parcels.

The government are going to be providing vouchers, it's all in the guidance I posted yesterday. Schools have the option of the voucher or the food parcel.

The government can not be indefinitely responsible for feeding children

This is absolutely ridiculous and when taxes rise, the people who have benefitted from any of these incentives that we will pay back through taxes will be the first ones to complain!

[quote Carpathian2]@parkpoolplunge

No, I don't find FSM patronising! What I find patronising is people telling me I should be great ful for this. I don't need to have a word with myself either as it's the obvious to me that not many people will take this up, if only so they won't be seen to be that desperate because they have pride.
As I said, I won't be taking any parcels. At least with the vouchers they could be redeemed discretely [/quote]
Sorry but if you would put your 'pride' above feeding your child that says alot about you.

As someone working in a school kitchen my point of view is that this doesn't replace the hot dinners provided in school, it's more like a light lunch. The hot dinner could be a roast dinner and a cake and custard. For free school meal children the hot lunch can be their main meal of the day. I just don't think the food parcels are good enough.

Its only meant to be lunches for 1 child. Not a family.

The money from child benefit and dla etc will be being used for other things.

Because my child has been home from school this week and it's been below freezing I have had the heating on all day when I have been out at work, I would not be able to pay that bill if I have to pay it up front. We don't just keep the child benefit for bills but use it on day to day living.

I spend £50 week on hello fresh, I don't eat any of that food myself but it gets enough to cook 12 meals with leftovers if any being used for lunch. That's 12 nutritious, hot meals for my DC which works well, they need that. I pick ones which get us the most value for money and the most vegetables and protein not the ones which are cheap meals. If I get a food parcel or voucher from school then I use that for my meals.

It's impossible thought for most schools to provide a daily hot meal unless FSM kids are in the building.

@Fairymad you are attributing the quote to me and I didn't say it, it was another pp.

Carpathian2
@parkpoolplunge

No, I don't find FSM patronising! What I find patronising is people telling me I should be great ful for this. I don't need to have a word with myself either as it's the obvious to me that not many people will take this up, if only so they won't be seen to be that desperate because they have pride.
As I said, I won't be taking any parcels. At least with the vouchers they could be redeemed discretely 
Sorry but if you would put your 'pride' above feeding your child that says alot about you.

@parkpoolplunge

If you're struggling to feed yourself and dc, then hello fresh is not the most economical way to get food. The price per meal is very high.

I feed 2 adults and a child on £50 a week for all meals. (baby too but they don't eat loads).

parkpoolplunge HelloFresh and those other subscriptions are massively inflated prices for food! My weekly shop is only £60 for 4 of us.

[quote HercwasanEnemyofEducation]@parkpoolplunge

If you're struggling to feed yourself and dc, then hello fresh is not the most economical way to get food. The price per meal is very high.

I feed 2 adults and a child on £50 a week for all meals. (baby too but they don't eat loads).[/quote]
Yes, I spend £35 on an adult and a teenage boy per week, I can't afford Hello Fresh.

[quote HercwasanEnemyofEducation]@parkpoolplunge

If you're struggling to feed yourself and dc, then hello fresh is not the most economical way to get food. The price per meal is very high.

I feed 2 adults and a child on £50 a week for all meals. (baby too but they don't eat loads).[/quote]
It works for us and it's easy for the DCs to grab a bag and cook if they are hungry before I get in, until this lockdown started I was working 12 hour days, now its dropped to nine. It also means we have food if we have to self isolate at the drop of a hat which has happened three times since October as I have nobody who can shop for us.

Teach dc how to cook.

I can't believe you're getting a FSM voucher yet ordering hello fresh. I can't afford that and I don't get any benefits.

@HercwasanEnemyofEducation

Teach dc how to cook.

I can't believe you're getting a FSM voucher yet ordering hello fresh. I can't afford that and I don't get any benefits.

£50 for 12 cooked meals is not excessive

It's over £4 per meal, that is a lot.

www.morrisons.com/food-boxes/box/5-meals-to-feed-a-family-of-4-box

This is far better value.

Anyone turning their nose up at that list of foods has clearly never been hungry. A starving child would eat a cheese roll or scrambled eggs.

@HercwasanEnemyofEducation

It's over £4 per meal, that is a lot.

www.morrisons.com/food-boxes/box/5-meals-to-feed-a-family-of-4-box

This is far better value.

That does look good but as we don't eat pork in any shape or form it wouldn't work for us.

'NailsNeedDoing
Can’t you see that if you don’t need the parcel then you don’t need the vouchers either? So all you’re doing is complaining about not getting a freebie.

I don't really need either,'

But sounds as though you've previously been delighted with the vouchers. Which you state you don't need

What a state it's all in.

There's lots of other options on the morrisons website. There may be one without pork. I'm just pointing out that hello fresh really isn't a good deal.

The food parcel is to replace the free meal you child would have had at school as they are entitled to FSM. Its not a food parcel for the family or for meals your child would have normally eaten at home. The government haven't launched a voucher system (yet) this time. I delivered ours yesterday and parents were very grateful.

@HercwasanEnemyofEducation

There's lots of other options on the morrisons website. There may be one without pork. I'm just pointing out that hello fresh really isn't a good deal.

I looked, they don't do a veggie or a pork free feed a family box. I take your point but it works for us and I spend no money on any luxuries so hello fresh is what I do to make sure we have the food in. As a single parent with no family or friends local I'm on my own and have to be sure food is in or being delivered.

Do you not have shops?

You can order online from the major supermarkets too.