To think that free breakfast at school is a bad idea due to the quality?

[Mushypeass]

Firstly, I fully agree with the principle of free breakfast for all pupils. My reservation comes from the quality of food that is often served up in UK school canteens. Obviously a poor quality breakfast is better than no breakfast at all but AIBU that it could encourage children to eat even more UPFs? For example, children who have may had a relatively healthy breakfast at home may now opt eat UPFs at school with their pals instead.

Seocondly, why is the food so poor in so many schools? How can other countries manage to provide their youth with nutritious and healthy meals but we can’t?

Yes parents shouldn’t have children if they can’t afford them, but some people lose their jobs after they have kids.

Dinners are created specifically to have the correct amount of each food group to ensure it is a balanced diet. There are vegetables on every meal and must be served as is the rule. There is fresh salad and fruit daily. The cakes are made with vegetables like beetroot.

The school meals are not fully funded nor are the breakfast clubs. The breakfast clubs impact on learning and are causing issues with taking staff from the children during lesson times as do the dinner times.

I'd rather they were fully funded.

The schools in my village do processed cereals or toast with jam and marg.

I agree with you, they are teaching kids that highly processed nutritionally void foods are the breakfast of choice.

Fruit and yoghurt would be better. School could even teach the kids to make their own yoghurt.

@Missedthis @mrsmalcolmreynolds

My whole career has been spent supporting disadvantaged children mainly due to the fact I was one many years ago. There is no pearl clutching here. The fact I was 22 before I ever tasted any other vegetable than a potato or carrot is exactly why I am concerned about the content of these meals. These children need food education more than most. Or should they just have their gruel and be thankful?

But are able to apply for benefits to house and feed them….theres also food banks if necessary

Yes because teachers notoriously have so much spare time on their hands FFS 🙄

No salad or fruit bar here! We have steamplicity meals delivered. its not good food.

Breakfast is cheap bread, cheap spread (not butter).. no way of making porridge as no school kitchen.

If course fed is better than nothing but it's upf cheap food and its a big shame that we can't offer better to kids.

I’m sorry but focus on the aim of it. There are child who have parents that can’t afford to feed them breakfast, children who have parents that go to will early and the child is left to get their own breakfast or children who have parents that can’t be bothered to get up and take them to school, never mind feed them a breakfast! It’s about children having something when they come to school.

There have been examples of some good breakfast choices on here, what do you see on your travels?

Also, @Mushypeass , I’m guessing you don’t spend much time around struggling families living on the breadline.

As a senior leader and safeguarding lead at a primary school, I can tell you that free breakfast of any kind can:

• improve attendance for families who are persistently absent.

• give poor children a better hope of succeeding in education because they’re not spending the whole morning too hungry to concentrate.

• give children who find school difficult a soft start to the day and more time around their ‘safe adults.’

Etc. etc.

We are absolutely on our knees running schools with no money and trying to support vulnerable families so tbh - we’ll take anything we can get.

That was your takeaway?

This, are the children and family against their will being forced to go and take this offer?

My friend works in a school and has had to buy jumpers for her students and take uniform home to wash it as they are coming into school wearing filthy clothes, unbathed and hungry.

Making yoghurt will not be high on her list and a bowl of cornflakes although processed will make sure a child can actually learn as they are not starving.

I don't think some people realise the issues some schools face honestly.

What UPFs do you mean? Bread? Cereal?
Is that really the worst thing in the world. Maybe peanut butter instead of nutella and fruit and fibre instead of coco pops.

I doubt many families are serving their children home made yogurt or multi grain porridge in the morning.

Don't let the perfect be an enemy of the good.

Just read this so fair enough…

But still, for a lot of kids something is better than nothing and we definitely do not have the capacity in school to be teaching children to make fruit yogurt every morning!

School could even teach the kids to make their own yoghurt.
😆 of course!!PRIORITIES!!

No. I’ve only seen one breakfast so far (hot chocolate and cheap white bread mainly) Although in one place I did see fried chicken wings being served as a break time snack. I’m assuming the breakfast offering will be of similar quality to what is offered for lunch.

So what do you suggest parents pay £5 a day for their child to have breakfast at school. I'd love to see how well that would go down.

School haven’t got time to be making toast and buttering bread, it’s a pre wrapped brioche roll or a pre wrapped soreen with a carton on milk, a piece of fruit on the side. Our school is in a deprived area si we have had breakfast provided for over 10years.

Honestly teachers don’t have the time to be pouring milk and washing bowls, it’s a cheap filling breakfast, and if you’ve not eaten anything it fills your tummy!

Only some parents of course.

Make their own yogurt? What planet are you on?

Some posters on this thread seem not to realise that there are children who go to school with nothing to eat and no parental input. Talk about privilege.

I do spend a lot of time. Hence my concern in what these children are being fed.

I am South East London, never heard of one in state school.

The only kids I know who have access to these are in private schools.

Our standards are so low in this country, it's depressing

I suggest we look at models from other countries where they manage it. France for example.