Jam sandwiches at wraparound care

[JBeanGarden]

My reception age DD goes to a really well arranged breakfast club and after school club 4 days a week. It works very well with 2 commuting parents. I only have one gripe and that is with the food they offer. Technically the food should align with the school’s healthy eating policy, as it’s run by the school not an external provider. The school has asked parents not to provide sweet treats in lunch boxes and it’s quite strict about sandwiches.

HOWEVER the school is not transparent about the wraparound food offer and I had to email three times to get them to tell me what they provide. Once they did, they disclosed that the after school options include a range of sandwiches, including jam, plus a pudding of cake and fruit. Of course, my four-year-old always goes for a jam sandwich and ends up with a very sweet tea 4 days a week. The school says they offer carrot sticks etc, however, not one single parent has ever mentioned this in conversation and so I just think it’s something they say but don’t provide.

We do talk at home about the importance of a balanced diet, but she’s still only four and temptation is there! She’s offered something a bit more nutritionally balanced she gets home, but she’s usually just full of jam sandwich!

I emailed the school to ask them if they are able to comment on this or if they ever review the food that they provide at wraparound care, but I haven’t received a reply. AIBU to push this further?

The hypocrisy is strong with this one! School are happy for the kids to have jam sandwiches when it comes down to the amount of £££ it will eat into to serve them healthy food. All the while they’re happy to police lunchboxes & dictate to parents that those type of things are unacceptable during the school day. I came across the same issue when every PTA event to raise cash is hot dogs, chocolate & crap constantly being resold at the end of the school day to entice the kids with the “my friend is having it” scenario but my kid wasn’t allowed to eat a sugar free ice pop I’d sent in for snack time. If you don’t pick your kid up until very late & tea is Jam sandwiches 4 times per week I wouldn’t be happy with that at all. They shouldn’t even be on the menu imo, it’s basically a sugar sandwich & they probably use the cheapest jam they can get their hands on with a higher sugar content than fruit. I don’t think you’re being unreasonable at all, the rate of dental caries for children in our area is shocking & the school aren’t helping it with jam sandwich “snacks” I also don’t think you should have to take a packed lunch when you’re probably paying through the nose for this service!

Chicken is not cheaper than jam. I'm sure you know that if you'd paused to think.

The A/S offers ham and cheese sandwiches as well as jam. The OP's child won't eat those though.

Who's going to pay for the more expensive food?

Pay for a Nanny who will give her exacrly what you want her to eat

A small jam sandwhich is not going to make your 4 year old fat. Children actually need sugar as part of a healthy diet
.......

And she isnt 'full on Jam'
She is full from the bread. If it had cheese or Ham in she would still be full.

I’m with you here OP, you can absolutely request that your child doesn’t have jam sandwiches. I wouldn’t be happy about this four days a week either. Where is the protein

You don't need to be a trained chef but you do need your food hygiene qualifications. You also need access to a microwave or oven to begin with, which many ASC's don't have.

Also, if one staff member is in the kitchen cooking and preparing food, you need to pay someone else to supervise the children to keep within ratio.

I can't be the only one who wouldn't fancy giving their kids any chicken, cheese or ham that was cheaper then the sort of jam the ASC is no doubt using.

Another poster said she was paying £8 for a session for each child. That has to cover staff costs, insurance, any materials needed for activities, drinks and snacks. Please explain how they can provide something other than toast or a tiny basic sandwich as an after-school snack on that amount of money.

You do need microwave access and someone overseeing that process (much more time consuming than making sandwiches). Not all A/S are going to have that available.

RTFT.

They offer cheese and ham, which her child chooses not to have.

In their other meals presumably

Those kitchens don't exist anymore, neither do the staff.

If they're hungry and that is the only option, they will eat it! That is no excuse at all. Giving kids crap food because they refuse the food better for them is really poor parenting and chicken was an example

Quite

You can't

yeah, OP obviously haven't heard about nitrates.

I'm sure people would have something to say if all teachers who are parents (and largely women) decided not to teach any more.

Exactly. The ratio has to be upheld.

I expect they have jam as an option to cater for children who are vegan / have dairy allergies.

It's not ASC's fault that the OP's child refuses the ham/cheese.

Chicken was an example, sure, but not a practical one. So not really much help.

Well in that case and to save all arguments, parents should provide a pack up and then their child eats the food of their choice but I do reiterate my original argument, sugar filled foods and UPF's should not be fed to kids at all and certainly not on a regular basis

This has been suggested to the OP, but she didn't seem too keen.

I've lost track, sorry 🫣 in which case, OP has a solution but is choosing not to take it 🥱

Charge £25 a session, things will improve, that means you'll have Hung onto your job if on minimum wage you'll not have made a penny for those two hours though.

But I do stand by my rant about sugar and UPF's!,

Agreed, so pay more.