What do we think of this?

[lou33]

Debate please...

School lunches are a golden opportunity for the govt to put into practise its current mantras on obesity and healthy eating. Why on earth aren't they using the biggest chance they have of influencing children's diet?? A decent lunch could be provided in the form of good sandwiches and hot options could include hearty soups and jacket potatoes, things that ime most children will eat. Prepared fruit & veg could be offered too.

Here in Scotland attempts are being made to give all children free school meals, in total contrast to what seems to be happening in Essex, though I'm not sure it's likely to succeed.

My nephews and niece's school stopped serving hot meals over 12 months ago now. They have to take sandwiches to school or you can pay the dinner money and the local sandwich shop sends the sandwiches in! It worries me because you do get parents that can't be bothered to cook a decent meal and the school dinner was the only warm meal they would get.

Forgot to say my sister paid for the school sandwiches for the first week and all the children got (infant children) was two quaters of a sandwich and an apple. Needless to say she sends them with home-made lunches now!

Our Cumbria, is doing this too. Apparently they did an audit of the school kitchens, and realised that there had been a serious longterm lack of investment in the kitchens, (the school dinner money is supposed to pay for this capital investment and the wages and the food), and realised that they had a time-bomb on their hands. So they've pulled out and left the schools to it.

Fortunately for us our school has decided to continue providing hot meals, as they have a pretty high take-up rate, and it's a big school.

I'm like you Scummy - my boys have always had a main meal at lunchtime, which makes after school easier. I've told them they can have packed lunches when they're 14! But recently the school did a 'promotion' of school dinners, and parents were invited to come and see and taste ... I was very disappointed by the quality of the food they are being given ... But I'm trying not to think about it, as I'm too lazy to contemplate making pack-ups every day, let alone cooking a meal for them every evening

Luckily, although I am in Essex, our school will still be providing hot and cold school dinners.

Our school has it's own catering staff and kitchens so that all food is prepared and cooked on the premises.

A few years back, the Headteacher did a "trial" run with the outside catering company - but was so appalled at the standard and nutritional value of the food served that he cancelled the contract and reverted back to "inhouse catering".

Why can't we all have great dinner ladies like Jeanette Orrery? (she's the woman who took over that school's dinners and improved them no end) This was all I could find about her so why can't Essex cc contact them?

My kids will be affected and we have to pre-book lunches a week in advance. We have decided to go down the packed lunch route - which is a pain, but we also have a childminder after school and we have asked her to provide a proper hot dinner every night. I think it stinks, a headmaster is a teacher not a caterer, the couty council should not do this.

Can I just give you a time saving tip if you are doing packed lunches. I make all the sandwiches/rolls for ds1 and dh for the week on a Sunday and freeze them. I bag them individually then take them out the night before. I make them with cooked meats, hard cheese or marmite. As long as they don't have any salad stuff in them they are fine and don't go soggy.

Saves a lot of hassle.

Well said suedonim. I read the article (possibly in the Guardian?) about the standard of school lunches, and the fact that they cost far less per head than prison lunches. Why don't the Government stop wittering on about Fat Tax and ensure there are healthy options available in schools?

Ds1 has school dinners and from what he says they mostly have variations on a chicken nugget theme etc. with potato shapes, and a token vegetable. He invariably has a cake/doughnut/cookie for dessert. I am not bothered - he is not overweight, gets plenty of exercise and he gets a decent home cooked meal in the evening. But surely for those kids for whom school lunch is the only proper meal of the day it's the perfect opportunity to introduce healthy eating from a young age. yet another case of "do as I say, not as I do."

None of the LA primary schools in the Milton Keynes area provide hot lunches.
Ds1 started school last Sept and has had to take a packed lunch at the age of 4. It's been hard going as he doesn't eat much and is ravenous when he comes home.
Also they struggle with wrappings etc - you have to be really careful to ensure that they can open yoghurts etc - there's no chance of making your own desserts in tupperware bowls etc. Also drinks cartons/bottles - it's a fine line between the drink being being leakproof and the kids being able to open them.
Sigh - it was all so much easier when he had a proper nutritionally balanced lunch at nursery.

iota, Sainsburys do a range of tupperware that is really easy to open. I had ds1 with me when I was shopping and let him try opening and closing different types and this was the only one he could open at the age of 4. He takes cut up fruit such as melon, grapes and strawberries in it. Also pasta salad.

thanks for that tip Kayleigh - We don't have a good Sainsbury's near hear, but I might be able to send dh out for some when he's at work

near here even

We have this problem even at nursery as my dds montessori does not provide lunch. Most of the kids, at 3 and younger, aren't mad about sandwiches, and as with most of you this was her one proper meal of the day. Our solution was to get together as a group of parents and take it in turns to cook a proper meal for the whole group (10-12 kids). So we cook about once every 2 weeks on average and we're sure our kids are getting decent food. Not practical for larger schools I realise but could work for smaller places.

west susex have already done this

no starving kids there I dont think

as a governor involved with a brand new school, we too dont offer hot meals. There wa s no iterst in the post of school dinner manager and only 30% if prents wasnted them to be offered.

tthe companies who do it are so restirctive in heir contracts tha tother local heads advised us against it.

Coddy, did you ask if parents wanted a healthy cooked lunch option? And only 30% of them did? I am surprised.

yes
I think the kids were too fussy etc
I was annoyed as I wanted it.
they did another survey later and they didntwant it still!.

I think parents like knowing what their kids ar eeating and how much comes home ebeven igf the stuff parents give them (even m/c ones) is crap

would you give a 5 year old a bag of crisps every day?

aint children supposed to have three stable meals a day i call a sandwich a snack personaly when my ds we will be getting free school meals for him but to be honest even if i had to pay i would with the knowledge that my child was getting a hot meal inside him expecialy at winter where they need hot meals and drinks to keep them warm as well as clothes well thats moa

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twig you remind me of when i was in school eat it or sit there until the bell rang because you couldnt have pudding or leave until you had ate all your main meal it used to be nice meals to cheese and potatoe mash with veg and choc crunch and pink custard for dessert friday my fav day in school because that was my fav foods

I agree with you about the choice twiglett ... my dss have always had a choice at home: You eat it or you have fresh air They have learned not to be fussy. Ds2 started school when he was just 4, and is suddenly faced with a choice of 3 main items, (or sandwich or jacket potato), 2 or 3 veg, 2 or 3 loosely potato-based product, and then 5 or 6 desserts!

School is soon going to have just one choice on offer, plus an option of a filled jacket potato if they don't like it. Much better IMO, especially for littlies!