How much money should I give me DS for lunch at college canteen

[Greenbanana7]

He's just started, Previously I just put money on his account at school. Thanks

I give mine £5 a day for college lunches and he also takes a drink and a few snacks from home.

Also mine has ASD and not great at budgeting so at the moment I transfer £5 each morning rather than give him £20 at the start of the week.

I'd probably give £5 a day and definitely increase the £4 pocket money (if you can afford to). You could also encourage him to get a part time job. You could also look into EMA for him - if that's still a thing

Can you get him to takea photo of the menu?

I have said to DD that I don't mind it being expensive if she has decent food not large fizzy bottles, haribos & crisps.

She is spending £3-4 so far but I'm delighted, as when she first started college she wouldn't eat at all at college, then soup from home, and then towards end of first year finally college food.

I would look to increase his pocket money and lunch money but give him one payment each week that covers both. That way if he wants to go OTT at lunch time, he will learn that it comes out of his money. Let him take snacks from home as well as a good way to encourage how to make money last longer.

I don’t know what the going rate for pocket money for his age is but I would add £5 per day to cover lunch.

DS is starting his first year of university (living at home). I have just upped his weekly money to £30 a week, he used to get £20 a weeK when at college. He didn’t get pocket money on top but I paid (and still pay) for his phone, Xbox game pass, toiletries, driving lessons and car insurance. He was in college 3 days a week.

If you want him to develop budgeting skills this is the perfect time. If he blows it all it's not the end of the world he'll manage a day without lunch and soon learn to budget.

If he has access to the money in advance at the weekend he can decide whether he spends X amount on a loaf of bread, ham, multipack of crisps, fruit and water to take a packed lunch from home and keep the leftover cash. Or he can have meal deals everyday and spend it all. Or waste it all on one day and be hungry.

He won't learn unless he is given the opportunity

To echo a PP, I'd give him a weekly budget and see how he does. If he goes crazy on day one, buying stuff for his friends as well as himself and is then on ham sandwiches from home for the rest of the week, well he probably won't do that again! What he might enjoy, though, is the freedom to make his own decisions.

EMA hasn't been a thing for a really long time- some local councils will offer support with transport etc, but that's it.

I give £25 per week so £5 per day. The food is quite expensive there tbh.

If someone is entitled to a bursary at our local college £4 per day is loaded onto the card.

Food from home or £5

£20 a week here. If they need to supplement it they can do from home. If they take water instead of buying it for £1.50 thats enough for the meal deal.

If he has ADHD and finds it very difficult to self regulated then simply handing over the bulk of a weekly budget for lunches is setting him up to fail and imo is quite cruel.
Go through some options from the canteen and the local shops he may pop into and make some (£4) bundles up on his phone notes to check and give him 2 days of lunch money to start with instead, you can happily build up to the whole week once he is comfortable with this.

Also at 16 he can start looking for a part time job to help build some responsibility and consideration over money, if he can eventually relate to £5 is 45mins working he may start to value it more and not be too cheeky asking for funds from you.

Will he not be mortified if you ring the college? Hes not 5 yrs old

Buying lunch every day sounds very expensive. What about packed lunch 4 days a week and bought lunch one day?

Crisps and drinks will be extortionately priced, as will any cakes and pastries - if he's quite fond of the sweet stuff, he could do over a fiver without any attempt to eat a full meal (or a sandwich).

EMA doesn’t exist in England any more but still does in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. My dc gets that plus they qualify for a daily meal allowance for £3.90. Not sure if you would be in the same circumstances but it might be worth checking.

My twin daughters have just started college and a meal costs £4.99 in the cafe but they say it doesn’t include a drink. Or sometimes they go to the nearest Sainsbury’s and get a meal deal there.