School demanding packed meals for 18 hr bus trip

[Snoopmummy]

DC is off on a school trip involving an 18 hour coach journey. School is demanding we drop children off in the evening having fed them (fine), equipped with nut free snacks (makes sense). We have also been asked to provide TWO meals: a packed breakfast and a packed lunch.

That means breakfast will be consumed 13 hours after they set off and lunch will be something like 17 hours later. Is there any food that can safely last for that length of time in an insulated bag or flask? DC does not like dried fruit or cereal bars.

AIBU to consider asking for the risk assessment over this and suggesting we equip them with money to get food on the way as they will need to stop anyway?!

Most recent was last November

Do you think they search the coach and go through everyone’s lunch boxes ?

Food aside, 18 hours is a long time on a bus/coach (I assume there is a toilet on board) but what about getting out to stretch their legs ? DVT doesn't just happen on airplanes. Just a thought,

As previously stated coaches have to stop every 4 hours at least and tachographs monitor this. No one is driving for 18 hours non stop

Thanks for the info, I thought perhaps there were 2 drivers as I know there is a time limit for one driver.

In my experience, the drivers tell the kids only to use the toilets if it's an emergency.

There are two drivers but they still have to stop by law

Yes, because they stink

You can't take meat or dairy into the EU. Whether it's checked or not, those are the rules. There will have been a risk assessment, and the school has got to abide by the rules.

18 hours on a coach is an awfully long time!

You actually can if it’s for personal consumption
https://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/travel/carry/meat-dairy-animal/indexamp_en.htm

you can take a small amount for personal consumption during the journey.

you can't tske a block of cheese as present for the host abroad.

*You can't take meat or dairy into the EU. Whether it's checked or not, those are the rules. There will have been a risk assessment, and the school has got to abide by the rules.

18 hours on a coach is an awfully long tim*e!

OMG these long coach journeys have been happening for YEARs!!!!! Decades even. How do you think cheap school ski trips happen!!!!??

Please stop about DVTs, processed food, combustible cheese baps and baby bel sniffer dogs .

God Alive!!!!!

This thread is WILD.

We've done this. They still all managed to buy snacks and ice creams on the ferry or at toilet stops 😂. We did those chocolate crepes that come individually packed and chocolate brioche I think. I'd be careful about using any packaging you don't want to lose. I wondered what they did for the return trip!

Babybel, mini cheddars, cherry tomatoes, crisps, mini breadsticks, mini cookies etc are a better choice than a sandwich.

Scroll down on that link.

No ones confiscating your cheese sandwich, unlike many posters on here I’ve done lots and lots of these trips

This, everyone worrying about EU rules - the kids CAN take ham or cheese sandwiches, panic over!

Complete lack of common sense on this thread ffs

What an absolute witch of a parent you are! Don’t send your children on school trips if you don’t like the arrangements that a teacher has organised in their OWN time and is going on in their OWN time!

How entitled are you wanting the coach to make extra stops for your child. Just send the food for goodness sake, it’s totally standard on a low trip.

This has to be a reverse. Some pain in the arse parent has complained, as usual. I honestly don’t know why teachers bother.

I'm really laughing now at the thought of ALL the ski coaches in Feb half term being stopped by the French which sniffer dogs to furtle out the slightly sweaty cheese sandwiches and mini babels. Can you imagine 😂. The ferry ports and tunnel would be backed up for days. And TBF I doubt they'd recognise a mini babybel as cheese 😆.

I drive to the Alps every other year aond they look at our passports and sometimes check there's the right number of kids in the back, no one has ever checked whether we've got any sandwiches on us. One the way back I bring back huge blocks of raclette cheese which is probably illegal too? Nobody cares.

I really like cheddar cheese when it's been left out of the fridge for a bit, I must say. Slightly sweaty cheese sandwiches on a long trip are delicious! I really want one now too.

Complete lack of common sense on this thread ffs

It's a parallel universe.

They can barely shuffle the traffic through as it is ( queues at Dover anyone? ) without having to inspect LUNCH BOXES for illegal SLICES of cheese.

( which aren't actually illegal )

SERIOUSLY 🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️🤦‍♀️😆😆😆

Shall we get onto DVTs now?

OMG these long coach journeys have been happening for YEARs!!!!! Decades even. How do you think cheap school ski trips happen!!!!??

And battlefields trips. Those are usually only 1-2 days - if they flew, they'd probably spend as much time getting to and from the airport at each end, as they do on the coach.

I know there are several companies that specialise in arranging battlefield trips for school parties. They are experts who know what they are doing, and it takes a huge amount of pressure off the teacher. Who otherwise would be making all the arrangements in his or her own time.

But God forbid anyone should have to pay for someone else's time and expertise.

If they're going on the ferry rather than the tunnel, they'll be out of the coach and walking around and be able to buy food. Though no doubt 99.9% of them will go for chips and sweets, rather than any healthy unprocessed stuff that might be on offer.

i wouldn’t be worried about nutritional value for an 18 hour trip. If they were buying their own who knows what rubbish they’d get ! It would be a nightmare to get everyone off the bus, to toilet (presumably the bus does have a toilet anyway as most do now ) and get food and drink - adds ages to the journey and risks losing children !
The dairy issue is huge as all their cheese sarnies will be confiscated ! Surely the school should have advised on this ? ? Pre packaged stuff with a long shelf life is the key - or a ring pull tin of baked beans - or rice pudding and a spoon !

The dairy issue is huge as all their cheese sarnies will be confiscated !

By the CHEESE SLICE inspection team at Dover. 👍🏻