To not send sweets to school?

[woothatsalotofstairs]

DC's birthday coming up soon, and I'm in 2 minds about sending them into school with sweets to give out to the rest of the class, as is the norm here.

I'm not a knob about sweets or sugar in general, but there's been a fair few birthdays already which meant lots of sweets coming home, and some of them not the type I'd normally allow (but too hard/lollipop type).

Is there any alternatives to sweets that are still fun and don't make me look wanky?

Sorry am I missing something? What is so terrible about a lollipop?

If you're really averse the sweets idea, then I'd look at stickers or mini tubes of bubbles - eBay is probably the best place for these. Wedding favour bubbles etc

A small packet of haribo or a freddo chocolate bar daily won't harm a childs teeth or health, just send sweets in.

Some (anal) parents see them as a choking risk

Hang on, is this A Thing?! I remember the odd occasion someone would bring in sweets for birthdays in primary school, as well as sometimes someone would bring some in after a holiday, but it certainly wasn't the case that everybody bought them in. I definitely never did!

Meh. My DS is 9 this week. They all love the giving and receiving of the sweets.
Cake can be problematic due to dairy allergies.

They are objectively a choking risk, along with boiled sweets. The NHS advise they aren’t given to babies or young children, and it’s reasonable to feel like a four year old is a young child.

Yeah, it's really anal to not want your 4 year old to choke to death at school on a known risk 🙄

Do people still hand out sweets, even if they've had a school party (and spent hundreds on it)?

If I do a party for my kids, I wouldn't expect to take more unnecessary stuff into school.

For me, it's not about health (well, a little), but more about waste and excess. Why do we feel we need to pack more crap into kids lives?!

Go for mini haribo bags or freddos?

Brilliant 🤩

How about sticker sheets?

We send in the Bear Yoyo packs which are sweet-like but maybe a bit healthier as they are made from fruit. Also suitable for vegetarians etc which Haribo are mostly not.

Aldi do an own brand version which are apparently OK too.

However, you might think this is a bit "wanky". I don't care, we've done it for years and no-one has ever said anything negative.

All right, all right, I'll send sweets!!!

Glad I asked 😂

I stand by not giving 4 year olds hard lollipops though...

Pack of haribo is the norm here.

Thanks to those who replied without being arseholes

Bags of sweet popcorn?

I fucking hate lollipops and boiled sweets for 4 yos. I can just see the dentist hovering over me...

The mini bags of haribo. You get about 10 teeny jelly sweets in them if that. Bargains around now on them too coz of Halloween

My son's class can bring in a treat for birthdays (we're in Ireland, healthy eating for lunch,no sweets/crisps/juice/cereal bars allowed) so on Friday it was 2 kids birthdays one brought in a hero's tub & the other brought in buns & it was a hit wit the kids I have to say

bear paws www.amazon.co.uk/Bear-Fruit-Paws-Strawberry-Apple/dp/B00GAXBQ1I/ref=asc_df_B00GAXBQ1I?tag=bingshoppinga-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=80264405731101&hvnetw=o&hvqmt=e&hvbmt=be&hvdev=c&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-4583863980703267&psc=1

Just give him the sweets! Let someone else be "that parent"

Could you give small bags of popcorn?

Why on earth has the school not banned this? It’s a ludicrous thing to do. Fine, have a party and give them as many sweets as you want at the weekend but this should not be happening on school grounds. No wonder we have an obesity epidemic.

I have a relative who works in A&E and she loathes them and won't let her kids have them as she has seen some nasty incidents. She says that they are a massive choking hazard as when you suck them they can easily become dislodged from the stick, and the sucking action means they then shoot to the back of the throat and they're just the right size/shape to block the airway. She is generally very laid back so I was surprised how strongly she felt.

Yabu. Let your kid take sweets or little buns in.