To think pupils shouldn't have to go without food for 5 hours!!!

[karise]

Just dropped DD off at school. They have a school trip today & we were told to take everything back home with us except their lunchbox & waterbottle!
AIBU to think that it is important for 4 & 5 year olds to be allowed to take a snack if they aren't due back to school for lunch until 1pm?
I just thank God there are no diabetic's in DD's class

I might be wrong but is it an Ofsted requirement that children in nurseries must have access to water at all times.

Thanks, Stewie. I thought I remembered something like that.

It is not always possible to find a place for 20+ children to have a snack and a drink, no.

I would imagine if any child seemed to be distressed due to lack of food/water, then it would have been simple enough to take the child and lunch box outdoors - or somewhere suitable - and make sure they ate something.

For very young children, it would have been better if a venue and time for a snack had been found but it's hardly worth getting het up about. There would have been a large adult to child ratio to make sure everyone was happy and comfortable.

Where was this trip?

I think this thread is out of all proportion.
They were going for a morning only trip, it was a lot simpler not to carry belongings.

I don't think it hurt them for one morning and I would be surprised if many noticed.
If they had gone for the whole day they would have taken a packed lunch, they would not have stopped for a snack. The lunch boxes would most likely have been left in a cloakroom or in a lunch room so that they had their hands free and they wouldn't have had access for a snack. If it was a really hot day in summer I expect they would have made a point of a drink stop but not in December. It was an educational trip-I doubt whether there was time.

Next time your DCs go on a whole day trip with a packed lunch I should make a point of asking them if they stopped in the morning for a snack and I think you will find that the only interval was for lunch.

Coach drivers in our area don't allow eating on the coaches.

yep, no eating or drinking on caoches allowed.

Definitely no eating or drinking on coaches allowed.

They had their water bottles, and packed lunches - right? Just how much other stuff was there?

I am trying to think back-I have been on lots of school trips over the years. Most of them have been whole day ones and I can only ever remember stopping for lunch.

dd went on trip today - left school at 11.30 and had packed lunch on the coach soon after (don't even go there, it was a very limited list of permissable if odd items !) returned at 6, no snacks - they are still alive !

I can only think that most of you haven't taken a whole class of young DCs on a trip and been the organiser!

Firstly there is the problem of where to put the snacks on the coach. DCs holding them is not good, a bottle will leak (there is always one)-therefore adults have to put them on the rack to roll around or they put them all in a big box.
When they get there DCs have to be reunited with their snack. Once they get inside they have to find somewhere to leave them.
When it gets to snack time they need to wash hands. Many places have 2 loos and 2 wash hand basins-there maybe already a queue in the ladies. Dcs will need help reaching the taps and drying facilities. There may not be a room to eat snacks which leaves an option of outside. Snacks have to be sorted back to DCs. Some won't want them anyway or will eat it quickly, probably before the last one gets back from the loos. The slow ones will be slow! Boredom will set in, 4&5 year olds will do what they normally do when bored! Some will get sticky and need another hand wash. If they are outside they are cold by this time. Rubbish and bottles etc have to be collected in.
Half an hour later they get back to the reason for coming.
Everyone will have to queue for the toilets before they go home.
A risk assessment for eating snacks makes additional paperwork.

I expect the organisers will have heaved a sigh of relief that, as a morning trip, the DCs didn't need to carry anything and could go to the toilet if and when necessary with one adult.

For a one off occasion it saves a lot of hassle to be a little hungry, bearing in mind that a lot of the class don't have a snack when offered it normally.