Free school meals

[Strawb1980]

Just had message from school: 'would you be interested in free breakfast and after school club in September'.
'Yes that would be great' I was about to text back.
Then another 'this is available if you're child is on free school meals'.
Also offering free summer activities for children on free school meals.
I work and I'm on a low income but still pay for my dc meals, breakfast and after school club would be a great help to me instead of relying on family to take/collect my dc whilst I'm working. Why do I feel that ppl working are often penalised for doing so?
AIBU to feel this way?

Why do I feel that ppl working are often penalised for doing so?

OP, I think you're looking at this the wrong way around - it's not that you're being penalised, it's simply that children of families with lower incomes are being targeted as in greater need of state support for this particular initiative.

Poorer children being offered extra help doesn't mean that you are being penalised.

Also, it's not personal, and obviously initiatives like this to support children of poorer families aren't always going to cater to the nuances of everyone's individual circumstances - it's not about who's actually more deserving - using FSM is just a simple and cost-effective way to roughly determine children in the greatest need for the purpose of certain targeted initiatives.

IMO, it's whoever messed up the messaging here who's at fault as that's what has made you feel like you've had something taken away from you to give to some other child - if they hadn't messed up the messaging in the first place (e.g. by starting with "If your child is entitled to FSM..") you probably would have just filtered it out as irrelevant to you rather than pondering what that benefit would mean for your situation.

I actually think all school meals should be free. Nobody should pay. Breakfast and Afterschool clubs were invented because, a while ago, in many schools it was the richest families (where both parents worked and commuted) that were often least likely to be able to feed their child at home. Kids from deprived families were only added later when the gov provided funding for them.

Educational inequality and poverty are a vicious circle. The cycle has to be broken to avoid generation after generation being stuck in the same cycle. You dont seem terribly interested in this though OP as it would force you to consider your lazy scroungers narrative that's going on here.

For what it's worth, these initiatives are not for the benefit or convenience of parents. They are there to try and address the fact that many children have barriers (some substantial) to achieving their potential.

If it bothers you that much and you know so much about all these children's lives, then change your life so you get all the perks you think they have.You live the lives their parents are living, claim your benefits, get your free school meals and do that for life. I would imagine you would want to though.

@Strawb1980

My original post wasn't slagging at ppl on fsm the fact is that these places offered in the first place are now for children on fsm FIRST. Like I've said in pp why should my dc lose a place that I PAY for when they only gonna use it cos its free and I need the place cos I'm starting work at 8.30

Because those children are particularly disadvantaged and the policy being applied is to level up the effects of that disadvantage.

@Strawb1980

My original post wasn't slagging at ppl on fsm the fact is that these places offered in the first place are now for children on fsm FIRST. Like I've said in pp why should my dc lose a place that I PAY for when they only gonna use it cos its free and I need the place cos I'm starting work at 8.30

OP I can see why it's frustrating. When you have the stress of finding childcare for the holidays (unless you can get 6 weeks off, which is unlikely) it is annoying that those who could be at home get first dibs. However, your annoyance is misdirected. If children weren't left in shitty situations it wouldn't be needed, we should all be fighting for the standard of living to rise for all, rather than turn against those doing their best just to get through the days.

The point of the sessions isn’t to enable parents to go to work. It’s to help the disadvantaged children.

@Strawb1980

My original post wasn't slagging at ppl on fsm the fact is that these places offered in the first place are now for children on fsm FIRST. Like I've said in pp why should my dc lose a place that I PAY for when they only gonna use it cos its free and I need the place cos I'm starting work at 8.30

Because they are primarily about offering intervention not childcare.

Do you expect the school to offer maths or English extra classes to children whose parents work or those who need it most?

This is the same thing.

Sorry - main point of the sessions.

Hence why others get offered a paid place if there are any left.

Do you have a bloke living with you and contributing to the household that you haven't declared?

What the actual fuck? Are you serious? Who on Earth do you think you are saying shit like that to strangers?

Not triggered just sick of people bashing hard working parents doing their best and having to have a bit of help to get by! I’ve worked since I was 13 and at one point had 3 jobs until I had my children. How dare you judge others for what they are being offered when you have no idea, just what you’ve “grew up” around. Jog on love.

Plus the breakfast and after school club is paid for. Albeit by the government through pupil premium, whether you agree with it or not. I applied for a school place for my daughter and ticked I was in benefits and the school received pupil premium for her. I didn’t do it for my son as when he went to school I wasn’t on benefits. They realised this and rang and rang and asked me to apply to the LA for pupil premium and I wondered why….I didn’t realise how much money a school got for a pupil premium child. I don’t use my sons fsm that he’s entitled to as he has a packed lunch. My dd does because she is an infant to which all infants get a fsm when their benefits or not.

@Getawaywithit

Do you have a bloke living with you and contributing to the household that you haven't declared?

What the actual fuck? Are you serious? Who on Earth do you think you are saying shit like that to strangers?

Thats what post the poster was replying to, it seemed like their comment was very self defensive about something that 99.99999999% recurring wasn't likely to be the case for them, which it wasn't. Perhaps your reading comprehension isn't great so no worries about completely missing the context of it and deciding to be offended instead.

I get where you are coming from, when dc were pre school and I was working full time I had less income for myself and dc after paying my mortgage and childcare than what exh had for himself while not working ( this was a man who was jailed twice for his abuse toward me), I was not entitled to nursery funded hours at 2 years old and it did gall me. However you need to keep in mind theses schemes are for the children not the parents, this is easy for me to say now, I earn well, dc doing well, not so easy for me to see a decade ago. You work, this is good for your dc, their outcomes are statistically better, but I hear you.

@JustLyra our school provided breakfast club cos parents were working my dc have been going for 8+ years on the days I work. Every child that attended had to pay not just mine. Feel I need to keep repeating myself cos certain ppl on here just want an argument. I DONT care that i have to pay. I DONT care that i dont get fsm. I DO CARE that my dc will lose their place because they DONT get fsm

[quote Strawb1980]@JustLyra our school provided breakfast club cos parents were working my dc have been going for 8+ years on the days I work. Every child that attended had to pay not just mine. Feel I need to keep repeating myself cos certain ppl on here just want an argument. I DONT care that i have to pay. I DONT care that i dont get fsm. I DO CARE that my dc will lose their place because they DONT get fsm[/quote]
But the point of the breakfast club isn’t to enable you to go to work. That’s a side benefit for you, but the actual driver for the club is to level up the disadvantage that some other children in the school are likely to have their potential held back by.

But the point of the breakfast club isn’t to enable you to go to work. That’s a side benefit for you, but the actual driver for the club is to level up the disadvantage that some other children in the school are likely to have their potential held back by.

By forcing women (yes mainly women) to give up their jobs if they don't have family support for childcare. That sounds like a good plan, at least then OP if you lose your job you can go. It's beneficial for both.

Longestfewdaysupcoming
But the point of the breakfast club isn’t to enable you to go to work.

Wouldnt it be nice if the government stopped promoting them as being available to enable working parents then?

If there aren’t enough spaces, then the school have made a decision as to how to prioritise children based on need.

Yes there should be better childcare provision. But we are where we are right now.

They have to have a cut off somewhere. I'm just grateful they aren't letting kids go hungry, no sense being bitter on what you are missing out on.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/wraparound-and-holiday-childcare-responding-to-requests

See the "Policy intention" of the Department of education policy on wraparound care. It starts:

"The overall aim of this policy is to help parents to work, or work for longer".

But the point of the breakfast club isn’t to enable you to go to work.

Except it literally is. The policy intention of the department of education policy on wraparound care is to enable people to work.

But not that particular breakfast club at that particular school because they actually messaged saying priority would be given to children in receipt of FSM.

@NoIDontWatchLoveIsland

www.gov.uk/government/publications/wraparound-and-holiday-childcare-responding-to-requests

See the "Policy intention" of the Department of education policy on wraparound care. It starts:

"The overall aim of this policy is to help parents to work, or work for longer".

Don’t you come around here with your well-reasoned arguments and “facts”.

OP: "wasn't slagging at ppl on fsm"

Also OP:
"sat at home all day"
"Trying to set a good example to my dc by going to work"
"everything for ppl on benefits"
" The Truth is the majority at our school have never worked a day in their lives and have no intention of doing so as a pp said and Its not because they can't its because they won't"
"yes it is because they don't want to"
"my dc lose a place that I PAY for when they only gonna use it cos its free"

It does kind of sound like you're slagging off families on FSM 🤷‍♀️

@Strawb1980

. I'm not judging ppl its the fact that places only available to children on fsc... I'll leave it there I think as ppl have totally picked up the wrong meaning of what point I was trying to make

You are judging people!

Not complaining that I pay... but why shouldn't I be offered also? After all I am going to work... not sat at home all day

That is a very judging statement.
Also how do you know they can’t work due to disability? How do you know someone isn’t a widow with children? Or studying to better themselves so they can pay?