School dinners, who can afford them?

[darcymum]

Following on from another thread about being required to pay for school dinners for the first term at school I wondered what proportion of school meals are taken by children who do pay for them?

DD1 starts school in September and I plan to send her in with a packed lunch, as do other parents I know, mostly because packed lunches are cheaper. I have three DCs who will be in the three consecutive school years and definitely couldn't afford for all three to have school dinners. I know that the fact is about £2 for a hot meal is very good value but they will get a hot meal at home in the evening.

If I was entitled to free school meals I would send them every day, which made me wonder if it is mostly children getting free school meals who take them up. Anyone know? I have heard the argument that it might be the only hot meal children get but that could be equally true for children with parents not getting income support (or whatever), which case all children should get a free school meal. Maybe the money would be better spent increasing benefits for people with children and letting parents provide packed lunches and to having school dinners at all.

ours is £2.20 with water or £2.32 with milk.
so having 2 to pay for its nearly £5 a day.
no way d making their packed lunch cost that.
they have
a sarnie,or maybe a pasta or rice salad
piece of fruit or chopped veg
a youghurt, normally in the summer a frozen frube to keep it cool.
a home made cake or biscuit
and a bottle of squash.

I'm in France and my DC's school dinners are E3,95 each per day, so E7,90 per day for me to find, and with the pound the way it has been against the euro that's been me paying £7.90 a day for school dinners.

No packed lunches allowed. School 8 miles away so too far to bring them home for lunch. The price of school dinners cripples me. Today I looked at the menu turkey and chips, I know it's a one off but for the money I really expect better than that. However the DC's know that they need to eat everything on their plate and most evenings dinner will be baked potatoes cheese and beans, spag bol etc.

Then they have bowl of rice day where the kids just get a bowl of rice to eat and the rest goes to charity.

My heart sinks when the school dinner bills come in.

Maybe it would be better to run school from 7.30 -1.30. They could have a 30 minute break mid morning with a substantial snack. Then lunches and it's associated costings could be taken out of the education budget and spent on education.

Children would have a lunch at home or wherever their childcare was. It would mean in the winter they would get more daylight and in the summer more time for sports or activities. Sports clubs could be run in the afternoon. The day would feel longer.

I might need a winch to get ds out of bed though. On the upside they'd have to go to bed earlier and dh and I might get an evening occasionally.

In the winter they'd be going to school in the dark alouiseg

60/40 split in our school of those having packed lunch v hot dinners . very very few qualify for free. so those that are choosing are predominatnly paying. I am. Can't be faffed to make packed kunch for ds. plus he would want extra bits, apple juices, dippers etc. the cost would mount. that kid eats like a horse. and is skiiny as a rake. only 6. eats like a 10 year old. thus school dinners is good for me. dh makes my packed lunch most days. grand. and we have a home cooked meal , hot each night. and that kid still eats bananas and milk post dinner.
make me laugh the Op assumes its all free measl poverty that drives those to have it. the menu choices thta my ds gets, i tell you dh and i quite fancy going. sounds lovely.
sandwiches, pasta, roast dinners, treacle pudding and custard. shove, shove, barge. move out the way. sod the work. i'm off for a school dinner,. sounds lovely.

When the childcare needs of the parents dictate the educational needs of the children it becomes a case of the tail wagging the dog.

If a working parent only works school hours then it's the same amount of hours.

I have two DDs in primary school and they have school dinners in Autumn and Winter and then in Spring and Summer they have packed lunches.
I just save up for them in the Spring and Summer terms as for both of them it can be up to £100 a term

compo they would be going to school in the dark but after school activities could continue all year round. Lots of outdoor sport has to stop when the evenings draw in. Think of the extra vitamin D they would benefit from.

Alouiseg. They do that in South African schools, our friends who live out there, go to school very early at around 7am but they are home by 1pm and they are allowed to have packed lunches or school dinners.
Lots of township children attend their particular school and they have a hot meal before walking back home.

It seems to happen in lots of countries, specifically hot ones to avoid the midday heat.

I pay for my kids lunches. £9.25 each per week.

I don't think I could do them a good lunch each every day on that. (also I frankly have enough to do without pissing about with packed lunches!)

It's a chunk, nearly £20 a week, but you find a way, don't you?

Oh and then all the 'voluntary' contributions they spring on you. It probably works out a couple of hundred a year.

But then, having kids costs money! So what can you do?

Ds used to have school dinners in the UK, I think it was around 1.35 a day, but it was 2 yrs ago.

We now pay 680 euros for the first child for the whole academic yr, and 340 for the second child.

No matter what time school starts you still have to fit the same things in each day. If you start school 2 hours earlier, you also have your breakfast 2 hours earlier and so will need your lunch and dinner 2 hours earlier ready for your early bedtime.

Miss Trumpton, which isvwhy I suggested a 30 minute break to have a substantial snack. Then lunch at 2pm isn't the end of the world. It works across Europe and parts of America and Australia.

Dh used to live in Santa Barbara then spend afternoons surfing. No wonder the children there look so fit and healthy.

If you are still in school for the same number of hours you could have a 'substantial snack' at 12 then a meal at 3.30pm at home, then supper at 7pm.

If you start school at 7.30am then you would be having breakfast at about 6.30 am and lunch at 2pm. How is that better than having breakfast at 8am and lunch at 3.30pm with a substantial snack at 12 ish?

I would like the extra time in the afternoons for activities, especially in the winter when its dark after school but I don't see the advantage from a feeding pov.

DS has school dinners most days but there is a couple of things on the menu that he doesn't like so on those days he has packed lunch. His cost £2 a day and I would say he in one of the few children in his class that have school dinners and have to pay for them and the rest get them free.

I actually think £2 a day is quite reasonable(but then I only have 1 at the moment)...it actually seems to cost more on the days that I have to get packed lunch stuff.

The menu is actually quite good and is very varied. Yesterday he had sausage in a wholemeal roll,potatoe wedges and beans with cheese/biscuits and apple/grape for desert,today he has got lasagne,garlic bread and salad with fruit salad/ice-cream for desert and tomorrow is roast turkey.

When he started in reception last september he had packed lunch and was literally eating nothing apart from a bite of a roll and a sip of drink and consequently his behaviour in the afternoons was appalling so we switched to school dinners and haven't looked back. He loves them and thats good enough for me...even if all his friends are having packed lunches he is still happy!

From the point of view of the school. They wouldn't have to budget for canteens, staff, food and all the associated costs.

The money could be used for education instead. With the greatest will in the world I don't have the skills or inclination to do school work but I am perfectly happy to be responsible for what they eat.

Am in Islington and since the start of this term all the primary kid's lunches are free.

I think the 1.6 million to keep it going past trial stage is being clawed back, and i think the council is going to carry on funding it anyway if they can.

Massive increase in kids having meals. Haven't yet heard what concentration health benefits if any they are seeing.

Our school is £2.20 per day no choice or veggie option and in /september they are to be £2.40.
My DD goes about once every 2 weeks as I think its a ridiculous price, and the menu very limited.

Very at Merryberry's post.

I can't afford the £2 each for my 3 so little bit pissed off that kids in that part of London are all getting free school dinners so non means tested. I thought the gov was supposed to be saving money not chucking it away.

Wages are very low where we live,really not happy with my tax funding people on a London salary to have free school meals.

I also think it's totally unneeded.

Are we all so crap at looking after our kids now we can't even sort out 1 hot,healthy meal a day and need school to provide that along with everything else.

All parents in an affluent,well stocked society like ours are perfectly capable of feeding our kids a decent meal. How much effort and cost is it to wop down a jacket potato with cheese,baked beans and sweetcorn???

It's interesting to see the number of people whose children switch back and forth within a week - in my dc's schools you choose on a weekly basis, they are either packed lunch or school dinners for the entire week, you can't mix.

Well said Milamae.