School dinners or packed lunches - which do your kids have?

[glasjam]

Am trying to establish what parents think about the school meals available in Glasgow. Particularly keen to hear off parents of children that have sampled or are still having school meals but also interested in those of you that have gone the packed-lunch route from day one. What do you think of the meals? Do you think they offer value for money? Do you find it works out cheaper doing a packed lunch?

Prettybird, Aitch and others are discussing the issue in the light of Jamie's American Food Revolution here

Ds used to have school meals regularly: I felt that they were good value and it meant I didn't have the hassle of makingup a packed lunch. He had a packed lunch once a week at his request.

Last year (P5) he started wanting packed lunches every day except the one where they got forzen yoghurts for dessert.

This year, because they haven't been issued with a menu, he is having packed lunches every day. Not sure it is any cheaper (I did the sums once and it was marginal): he gets a roll/sandwich (ham or Nutella), a full fat yoghurt with a fruit puree base (from Lidl), a multi-vitamin fruit juice carton (from Lidl), a small container of stawberries or an apple, and a cheese triangle or a cheese string. Once a week he gets pasta with pesto instead of the roll/sandwich.

If I have done some homebaking, I might put in a home made biscuit or fairy cake (about once a month).

Ds did ask for money in the early weeks of term (just after we had that facetious leaflet ). I gave him it until I found out more about it. He now knows - and accepts - that we are "boycotting" it.

tbh my son works out cheaper being school lunch but i dont think they are always healthy enough, it costs £1.15 for school meal, which ...

to explain...we had enrolled my son in school done the enduction day etc to then move before he started and the school he was ment to go to was £2.35 A DAY which i think is shocking

but also my son says no-one will sit with him if he goes school meals :( so thats the biggest reason now that he gets packed lunch, id rather spend a little more knowing he is happy iykwim, one little girl always sits with him when he is packed lunch :)

he normally gets :-

1 piece of bread, butter and filling (normally cold meat)
1 piece of fruit (he prefers pears)
1 youghurt or jelly pot
3 or 4 cocktail sausages or similar
and his juice

i always think it doesnt look like alot but when you think of the time he has to eat and play

rarely i will add in a wee chocolate biscuit or something, he has to be allowed some treats to,

but NEVER fizzy juice, he gets diluting juice,
he only gets fizzy juice when we are in ireland on holiday (i know bad mummy letting him drink fizzy juice lol but its like 2 maybe 3 times a year he goes and drinks maybe 4 cans the whole time we are over, its only if we are down at the pub he gets it, oh i know even worse mummy taking him to the pub, but its southern ireland, its the norm over there :p

lol

xx

oh yeah forgot that he gets they cheese string things too x