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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

No free school meals during Feb half term

771 replies

noblegiraffe · 14/01/2021 13:27

The new guidance on free school meals says that schools should not provide food or vouchers during Feb half term.

This won’t be needed as some general funding is going to LAs and they will be expected to provide food/support for the week schools are off.

This is bonkers, right? They’ve only just sorted it so that kids get more than a manky banana, cheese and dry bread for lunch and they’re going to switch to a different system for a week?

Does this government just really hate feeding hungry kids?

YANBU: sticking with one system for feeding disadvantaged kids would be best

YABU: it’ll be fine, no one will fall through the cracks and the transition will be seamless.

No free school meals during Feb half term
OP posts:
VinylDetective · 14/01/2021 18:47

@BumbleBiscuit

Can’t feed em, don’t breed em!

Yes people loose jobs and things go wrong, but the majority of these situations are down to bad family planning choices!

They’re not, unless of course those people who made bad family planning decisions all had crystal balls and had several years notice of the current shitstorm.
Doobydoo · 14/01/2021 18:47

I think if you are already in the system there are things in place. I worry for those who over the last year are trying to navigate it......

woodhill · 14/01/2021 18:49

"woodhill
I genuinely don't begrudge hungry children being fed but don't believe it should be down to the state to feed them especially in school holidays that is the responsibility of the parents.

I'm not a high earner at all and my husband works in a supermarket, we both work full-time but aren't entitled to anything except child benefit.

People like us are struggling but aren't being considered. We have had no payrise yet our electric , gas and water has gone up due to everyone being home .

Our food bill has gone up both due to inflation and again the kids being home.

Universal credit has gone up £20 a week yet people in the middle like us have no help .

I had to buy a laptop as we only had 1 device between 3 kids.
I bought a very basic chromebook on my credit card as that's all we could afford and we're not eligible for a loan device.
What about families in the middle like us?

Unfortunately it's always like that"
I'm sorry for your situation .

But

You can't not begrudge children food then say you don't think it should be the responsibility of the state. Sadly it's one or the other."

Fortunately I'm not in that boat now but have been in the past so I was sympathising with the OP who stated this

Doobydoo · 14/01/2021 18:49

And there are people who have 5 children whilst on benefits....but that is another thread. It is not the fault of children and they need to be fed,clothed etc.

gottakeeponmovin · 14/01/2021 18:50

People need to feed their children in the holidays for goodness sake

LizFlowers · 14/01/2021 18:52

@AdoraBell

Many people lost jobs in 2020, myself included, and many have less income due to less hours or being on furlough.

That’s one difference.

Exactly.

Times are particularly hard at the moment for some people. There is no way that children should go without food.

52andblue · 14/01/2021 18:54

@AttackOfTheFloppyKnob

Feeding children who aren't being fed at all at home is just papering over the cracks. Instead of feeding them why on earth arent these children being removed from those environments and cared for properly. ?
Really? I am a Carer now for my two Autistic children. My husband left as it was 'too difficult'. He's never paid a penny CM. I get £67 Carer's allowance instead of being able to work. It is what it is. But it is not a case of 'unplanned children born to feckless poor'. And no, my children should not be removed from their loving home because we are broke. (that would also cost 'the state' ie ALL of us as taxpayers - some benefits are taxable too - infinitely more)
ghostvillage · 14/01/2021 18:55

[quote AldiAisleofCrap]**@ghostvillage* People on the system of tax credits have not had that £20 increase, it's stayed at the same level.* if they claim wtc the increase is the same as on UC.[/quote]
My WTC hasn't increased, it's gone down by £30 for an unknown reason as my income has dropped (but is not below the minimum hours to claim it). It's not to do with last year's income because I wasn't working for most of last year.

VinylDetective · 14/01/2021 18:56

@gottakeeponmovin

People need to feed their children in the holidays for goodness sake
And if they can’t, then what? Let them starve?
UndertheCedartree · 14/01/2021 18:56

@AttackOfTheFloppyKnob - why aren't all the DC being removed by Social services - well, probably because they don't need to be! Living on a very low income isn't a reason to remove DC - Children's services will try to help - I was given referalls to a food bank and supermarket vouchers when I had no money due to a mental breakdown.

MsConstrue · 14/01/2021 19:02

@BumbleBiscuit

Can’t feed em, don’t breed em!

Yes people loose jobs and things go wrong, but the majority of these situations are down to bad family planning choices!

Yes fuck the children - they should just go without food during the school holidays shouldn't they?
MsConstrue · 14/01/2021 19:04

@Doobydoo

And there are people who have 5 children whilst on benefits....but that is another thread. It is not the fault of children and they need to be fed,clothed etc.
How many families do you suppose have 5 children on benefits? Maybe you can provide some stats on the huge numbers of large families on benefits. In my professional view (and I work in this area) there are very few. But maybe you know different?

Have you heard of the 2 child limit? The benefit cap?

And even if a family somehow ends up on benefits, should the children starve because of the situation the parents have (often through no fault of their own) ended up in?

UndertheCedartree · 14/01/2021 19:07

@Chuckleknuckles - when I applied for UC I got nothing for 5 months - I got through my savings very quickly - no, it got to the point I had no money for food. I was then put on approx £300 per month - no I didn't have enough for mortgage, bills, food. Now I'm in a lot of debt so I still struggle for food money.

MsConstrue · 14/01/2021 19:07

@FTEngineerM

Gosh, grabby.. I understand parents end up in predicaments sometimes but if you can afford to feed your child ever there is something seriously amiss.
grabby? are you talking about those families in poverty who can't afford the basics to feed their children? Grabby?! Gosh.
Livelovebehappy · 14/01/2021 19:07

Another one getting p’d off about free school lunches being offered during the holidays. I could understand it when schools were closed during the first lockdowns but surely during normal school holidays, you would normally feed your own children? The problem with setting up schemes like this is that at the end of it, you’re going to get people kicking off when it’s stopped.

MsConstrue · 14/01/2021 19:09

@gottakeeponmovin

People need to feed their children in the holidays for goodness sake
And what if they actually can't? What do you suggest?

And actually, instead of questioning the need for vouchers, why don't you question why people are in poverty in one of the richest countries in the world. why they can't afford to feed their children? I'll give you a clue: it isn't because of poor choices or fecklessness.

AldiAisleofCrap · 14/01/2021 19:09

@Livelovebehappy you are angry that hungry children are being fed in the holidays???
Children have always been given free lunches in the holidays via multiple lunch clubs run by charities, churches , cafes and sometimes schools!

MsConstrue · 14/01/2021 19:11

@Livelovebehappy

Another one getting p’d off about free school lunches being offered during the holidays. I could understand it when schools were closed during the first lockdowns but surely during normal school holidays, you would normally feed your own children? The problem with setting up schemes like this is that at the end of it, you’re going to get people kicking off when it’s stopped.
Yes let's just stop feeding the children.

Why are YOU pee'd off? Why? Because children are getting fed?

Maybe you should look at what the pandemic is doing to the poorest people in this society. How they have been the ones to lose jobs, hours, income. And how their costs have gone up. And maybe you should develop some empathy.

Greeneyedminx · 14/01/2021 19:12

I, like many people in the past, have been extremely poor and struggled to feed and clothe my DC in the past.
My priorities were always food, the rent, then bills.
There were no handouts when my children were small apart from child benefit. However, my DC were always fed. Maybe not the most nutritious meals... but they always had three meals a day, cereals/ porridge and toast for breakfast, beans on toast, sandwiches, soup etc for lunch, and cottage pie, spaghetti bolognaise, sausage and mash etc for tea.
No drinks other than milk or water, no puddings or sweets or yogurts or biscuits as I couldn’t afford them. They were always fed though and didn’t go hungry, maybe they would have enjoyed takeaways etc, but they never got the choice as we couldn’t afford it.
Sometimes kids just have to have the basics and learn to enjoy other foods such as puddings as a treat.
I am astounded sometimes at how people say they can’t afford to feed their kids, yet they buy them McDonalds, KFC etc, the cost of those will feed them for a few days. Food is cheaper now, relatively speaking, so you can buy soup in Aldi for 31p, bread for 60p, even a bag of apples for 49p.
I am upset that kids are going hungry these days and are reliant on free school meals during the holiday periods.
The food boxes were/are rubbish, maybe food vouchers or cash would be better for low paid families, let’s hope the cash is being spent on the children’s food.

MsConstrue · 14/01/2021 19:12

(will hide the thread now, but god this is depressing.).

Doobydoo · 14/01/2021 19:12

MsConstrue....I live on a street with 40 houses..4 of the families have 4/5 children....whilst on benefits.I know of one household who due to crappy circs split up and had to switch from tax credits to UC and the remaining parent is really struggling. I used to be a Paediatric nurse....I am fairly clued up. I also said in my post that it is not the fault of the children.

VinylDetective · 14/01/2021 19:13

Those kids aren’t going to be doing much living, loving and being happy are they @Livelovebehappy?

Livelovebehappy · 14/01/2021 19:15

For a weeks holiday to feed two children lunches. Food shop from Lidl’s, or another supermarket:

2 loafs of bread = £1.10
Block of cheese/or sandwich spread/or pack of chicken = 99p
Butter/Marge = 55p
Pack of apples = £1.00
Multiple snack pack, eg crisps = £1.00

Less than £5 for the week. You could replace sandwich filling for beans.

UndertheCedartree · 14/01/2021 19:16

@PrankedByLife - what are we spending our benefits on? Mortgage, bills, food - the usual. Plus all the debt I got in when I became ill and could not work. No benefits for 5 months and then given £300 a month - could you live on that? I find it so upsetting that you suggest my DC should be taken from their mother because she became unwell. One of the most heartless things I've ever read.

UndertheCedartree · 14/01/2021 19:18

@miserableannie - and if they can't? Because they can't work due to illness - what then?