Free school meals

[FlatteredRhubardFool]

Not sure it's an AIBU but want to vent.

DC's term started 3 weeks ago. I've had 2 food boxes dropped off. The last one was a week ago and contained:

A rotten apple
A pre-frozen loaf of bread that went mouldy a few days ago
Cling film wrapped grated cheese that was use by last Sunday
Milk that was use by Sunday
A mini pizza that was use by Monday
Cake that was use by last Saturday

Eggs
Bananas
Oranges
Rice Krispies
Biscuits
Baked beans
Pasta
Pasta sauce
Margarine

There was also a leaflet on food standards and how each meal is supposed to contain unrefined carbs. Not sure how the white sliced bread, white pasta and Rice Krispies fits into that

I feel like I should be grateful but I feel quite insulted that dc has been provided with food that wouldn't last the week due to the short dates on things. I feel too embarrassed to contact the school.

I thought the issue of fsm had been resolved but looking at what has been provided by school it remains poor. The items themselves are ok but the use by dates are rubbish and therefore the food doesn't last the week.

When at school they get a fruit snack in the morning and a two course lunch so what they are sending is not compatible at all.

Thank goodness my other dcs' school has sent vouchers.

The cutting up of food surprised me - a whole cucumber in tesco is 40p - wouldn't they have to pay more to get someone to cut the cucumber up and repackage it than the half is worth?

I saw half peppers etc on Twitter too s seems common.

It still looks nowhere near good enough as fresh or what you cooks do with the money.

The shielding boxes I saw in Scotland were the exact same quality as what you've reported op.

Is the lesson that we shouldn't be trying to do what Morrison's, tesco or lidl can do better and cheaper?

Somebody really chose an apposite user name, didn’t they @miserableannie?

I hate the thought of small kids going hungry or having to fill up on rice Krispies. For some children their FSM is the only hot meal they have and the food in these boxes sounds poor quality. Parents doing their best making pancakes and muffins but with no veg their meal options are limited. Veg are so cheap I can't understand why the boxes can't have a few jacket potatoes, baked beans, ham, cheese, eggs, apples some carrots and a whole 40p cucumber as well as oranges. Everyone knows oranges keep well and full of vitamins. They should just order people to be delivered with one of the Morrisons boxes. It is cold at the moment too. Kids need a hot meal. Mine are having cooked breakfast and dinner. I don't grudge taxes being used to feed hungry kids. In fact I can't think of a better way to spend tax money.

For some this food box will be the only food they have for their child's lunches. I'm lucky that I have additional food at home to turn things into muffins and pancakes and crumble or whatever I decide to bake with all those apples. I have good cooking and baking skills and thankfully a fairly well stocked pantry due to stocking up on basics for brexit over the past two years. Dc won't go hungry but many children will with a box like I've received. Before anyone starts I've gone without to ensure we had a brexit stash. I buy most of our clothes second hand off eBay especially this last year as I'm shielded and can't get to the shops even when they are open. The supermarket I get my deliveries from had to close for 10 days and my last 2 deliveries were cancelled so that food box has been the only fresh food coming in. I'm very fortunate compared to some.

OP, I don't understand you. Why are you 'venting' to strangers who can't help you. It is entirely different matter if you should be grateful or not, but the fact is you are entitled to receive the food box. If the food is not usable/edible (rotten apple, mouldy bread) then take a picture and provide the feedback to the school. It has nothing to do with 'overworked teachers', they are not the one doint it.

The last one seems a little better than the others but it's all dependant on what your DC are like around food. If they'll eat anything then you have an egg for cooked differently each day with maybe sandwich one day, beans on toast another and so on.
I wonder what they're doing for children with food allergies though.

You’ll probably get a lot of hate here op that you should be grateful what you get.

The package sounds unacceptable and not fit for purpose. So I’d be annoyed too.

People are horrible on here. These days I’m in a comfortable financial position and we aren’t entitled to any help but that doesn’t mean I begrudge anyone who does get some help.

I was a struggling single mum many years ago and the help would have been grateful for the help!! Food is expensive!

I also grew up in a low wage household and we got free school lunches. My parents would have appreciated the help too.

Our situations can change at any minute. Some awful people on here.

and yes I’d complain. Not fit for purpose at all.

Are your kids vegetarian? Where is the protein/meat? I would honestly complain. Our children deserve more.

And op, you absolutely shouldn’t be grateful for any old crap that is thrown yours and dc’s way. I’ve heard people say before that they are going to take out of date jars and tins to the food bank. If it isn’t good enough for your own family, why is it good enough for someone else’s?

It sounds really disappointing but unless they are delivering twice a week it is likely that bread , milk and fruit will go off before the week is out.
I would hope that they give you things like baked potatoes with beans and pasta and sauce for the end of the week.
At the Foodbank We've been doing some box packing to help out the school. There are approx 170 children and 130 boxes. Last week the supplier sent 170 bags of 6 apples, all with the 23 Jan on them, for Week Beginning 25th Jan. we delivered the boxes on Friday and although we did put the apples in we also put in tinned fruit from the Foodbank and the extra cake in the hope that a couple of the apples would be ok or some might be able to use them in some sort of home made dessert. The whole situation is less than ideal: have you been able to contact your local delivery organisation OP? They may be able to top up where things are short dated or damaged on arrival.

How many children is your box supposed to provide lunches for op? That looks like a single child /single week box to me.

Tbh your schools lunches sound rubbish to do not shocking that the food parcels were ! I would ring and ask about the voucher scheme.

I remember the dismay of opening my neighbour's shielding parcel and thinking I'd be utterly depressed if that was what I had for the week.

Pizza sauce with noddles anyone? Er yum.

It's for one child.

Oh yes, the shielding boxes were awful. The fruit and veg was going off when it arrived. I ended up with lots of rice, pasta and meatballs. Oh and tomato soup. They sent 4 or 6 cabs per week. The food bank benefitted from a lot of those parcels with the tinned or long life things. The brexit stash came in very useful then too.

I'm going to speak to school about swapping to vouchers.

it's like the same low standard has been set across all provided food parcels. They really ought to give people the choice, even if you're shielding now you can order boxes online, Morrisons does a subscription box with recipes.

@KarmaStar

Tbh I'd be thankful for any help I receive not complain about what I dont.

There’s something deeply wrong with our society when we tell people in need that they should be grateful for whatever assistance they receive even if it’s a terrible standard/not suitable.

OP, I too would also be annoyed to receive things like white bread, sugary cereal etc and a leaflet in the same package telling me to feed my kids healthy food. The vouchers are better because then you can get stuff your children will actually eat/is suitable for their dietary needs but even the vouchers aren’t without faults as apparently they can’t be spent on an online shop which seems stupid to me as many people would need to have their groceries delivered for a multitude of reasons.

It represents one school lunch per day and I think the schools (whose job it mainly is to educate) are doing their best to feed the countless children on fsm. How do people receiving free school meals manage during school holidays etc?

It’s ungrateful what type of bread are you wanting? Because white bread is usually cheaper. There’s nothing wrong with Rice Krispies if you don’t put your own sugar on they are quite bland.

Some people are just too dam fussy!

@Bbq1 parents are going to become TOO reliant on a voucher once the pandemic has eased. The amount of posters shouting they can get more with their £15 voucher!! Of course but really it’s not meant to cover more than one lunch a day!

The amount of posters shouting they can get more with their £15 voucher!! Of course

If you’re a tax payer, why are you so happy for your money to be squandered by filling the pockets of the government’s chums? If I’m paying for children to be fed, I want them to get £15 worth of decent, nourishing food, not a box full of refined carbs.

Wouldn't Moan at all if it was free

You wouldn't moan if your child was given mouldy food as long as it was free? You need better standards.

It's a sad reflection of where we are as a society that there are so many replies in this thread suggesting that op should be grateful for receiving a box containing rotten, mouldy and out of date food .

Even if you don't feel it is an issue that a family entitled to FSM is sent such a package, perhaps you could work up a bit of concern around the fact that the money paying for this is public money? People are profiting from this. That should disgust anyone.

@Daisypaisy2 I expect the type of bread that OP wanted was not a pre frozen loaf that went mouldy in a few days.

Not a lot to expect really.