to complain about the new healthy eating policy at dc's school

[FranSanDisco]

Dc's attend the local state primary and on the whole it is a good a school. On Thursday they brought home a letter on a new healthy eating plan affecting packed lunches and snacks. I have no problem with the food they suggest for packed lunches but snacks include only : fruit, raisins and veg. No bread sticks, bread and butter or cheese which they were allowed before. Also, they intend to pre-designate certain pupils to open the lunch packs (Yr 5) and inspect them. Those failing the good food test will get a leaflet inserted and be followed up by letters/meetings for further failures - is this a little OTT or do I need a chill pill? I am really bothered by this interference and the fact that raisins aren't actually healthy for teeth so how can they ban bread sticks and cheese but OK the dried fruit. If you were me would you drop them a line?

I think they get told by LEA what is "healthy". YANBU though but suppose with won't kill the kids to only have what is permitted. you can always give them something when they get home.

I'd be going in to see them! Cheese is a very healthy snack. My DS1 won't drink milk therefore cheese provides an essential part of his calcium intake. Bread, especially if it's wholemeal, provides fibre. I'd understand it more if they'd banned the raisins because of the sugar content and risk of tooth decay! I'd go in and ask for their reasoning behind banning those items.

I don't get it surely they can still have cheese sandwiches for actual lunch and the 'snacks' are for inbetween times.

If so just give them cheese sandwiches for lunch.

I think it's a bit ott, and at the end no one can really force you to feed your child something.

Am sure you arenot sending them in with 5 mars bars and a can of coke, so as long as your packed lunch is reasonably healthy, I'd carry on.

If it were me, the silly school notes would go in the bin and I'd welcome a meeting where I could put my point across.

You're fine!

inappropriate to use children to police other children

children need calories - some more than other

raisins are not a healthy snack

I would certainly speak to them and oppose their plans vehemently -

Can we just be careful villifying raisins

They're a dried grape ffs. Not the devils clags.

It's not aimed at you. It's aimed at parents who send in Dairylea dunkers for snack and two more packs for lunch. Children deserve more than processed foil packs for their nourishment. Unfortunately they can't just target the offenders. So if everyone has to conform then the offenders will as well. It's normal round here to just have fruit for snack. I think we can also send in fruit bars or other 'healthy' bars if you want. Although some of those just look like a major sugar rush. Its best to just go with it and save your annoyance for the big stuff

Laurie, The Dental Health Org suggests children eat cheese or alkaline food after eating sugary food e.g raisins but the school say no cheese at snack time. They might as well eat toffees really. I'm more annoyed at making children police the packs though.

Go in and make sure that the school know that only people with a food hygien certificate can have anything to do with the food your ds has in this pack up.

Explain that if the school want these children to inspect the packed lunch boxes will need to take the exam to aquire the certificate, if not then you will take this to enviromental health and put in a formal complaint about the food habdlers at the school.

People anywhere that handle food are required to have these certificates - this will also include these children

Or just put the above in a letter.

having worked with both food and food hygien certificates I know that you can legit strecht this to this situation

It's the same rule here, only fruit, dried fruit or veg is allowed. No fruit bars, cereal bars, yoghurts etc.

The blanket ban is to stop those numpties parents who send in Coco Pops bars and Chocolate Frosties Muller corners as "healthy" snacks. If they allowed yoghurts or cereal bars they would still bring them.

Lots of parents grumbled when it was brought in last year, but it actually works quite well. Also, as a parent who only sent fruit as a snack anyway, it helps not to have your child coming home and saying that X has a chocolate bar at breaktime so why can't they?

Just re-read the op and agree the 'policing' sounds ott. MDAs can easily scan offending lunchboxes and slip the leaflets in if necessary. Follow-up meetings? They're taking this VERY seriously. I think they're trying to scare you into conforming!

Wouldn't be too keen on fellow pupils dictating policing the opening of pack lunch boxes.

Ivykaty - good point about it not exactly being hygienic other pupils poking ab out in each others pack lunches.

YANBU. I detest healthy eating policies in schools. It is up to me how I feed my child.

I wouldn't mind them so much if they made any sense, but they don't. Dd1's bans 'large' bars of chocolate i.e Mars Bars, Diary Milk etc. But huge chunks of cake are fine

Dd1 missed out on the green apple sticker (healthy lunch box) because she had peanut butter in her sandwhich and not lettuce/salad and because she had flap jacks (home-made)

Dd1 listens to all this trollop, which is very bad for her. She is a very, very active child who eats tiny amounts of food and thus needs those amounts to be high in calories and protiens.

whats the issue with cheese??

dd is only 7 months i'm not up to speed yet on packed lunch politics

Does your school open the lunch packs and inspect them?

We've had a fruit and veg only at playtime policy for about 20 years! No one complains.

What? You can have cheese for lunch but not snacks

so they are just complaining about the order in which you eat your food.

wtf.

Cheese in a sandwich as part of a packed lunch is fine. On its own at playtime NO!! It is fattening.

raisins are dental napalm

Everything is fattening if you eat enough of it Fran.

What about other dried fruits, are they allowed?

Fran, young children need a lot of fat and calories in their diet. Cheese is fine. providing they aren't going through a large block a day.

It contains protien, calcium and some other vitamin I cannot remember. It's v good for growing children. Adults should not eat too much of it, but a child dietary needs are very different to that of an adult.

small children need fattening