Should after school club cut hot dogs lengthways for reception children?

[Sunnyday14558]

my son, just 4 has started school. I’m the after school club they serve dinner and today they gave hotdogs (the frankfurter types) in a hotdog bun. When I’m with him I always cut sausages lengthways as I thought they were supposed to be one of the worst choking hazards. Should I be asking the after school
club to be doing the same or is it fine for a 4 year old to eat hotdogs?

Solid starts recommendation for eating a hot dog while is 2. I wouldn’t see why a 4 year old would need it unless they have issues with eating?

From personal experience. Yes. Choking on a sausage chunk is a big risk.

Stuff like this always shocks me. My son has just started reception and they're serving full size raw carrots to them after years of nursery cutting them up, doesn't seem safe to me (luckily my son hasn't been eating them). I've also seen and heard of other schools giving full sized mini eggs too.

Personally when it comes to safety I'd have to say something. I couldn't live with myself if anything happened and I hadn't tried to prevent it.

I've never even thought of this as an issue. Can the child not cut them up though!?

I wouldn’t think so. I never did at home and our primary school serves sausages either whole or in a roll, never cut. I would expect a 4 year old to manage to cut it themselves if needed or safely pick it up and eat it whole.

Why would i need to cut them up? Never have done

I never thought about it but my ds school is obsessed with having grapes cut up in school lunch so I can see a hot dog could be a similar risk

Hot dogs are crap, they shouldn’t be giving them at all.

Can children not bite with their teeth anymore? It just amazes me how many things people cut up at older and older ages. I stopped cutting up grapes when DD was 3. She’s 4 now and not dead so far. At this rate of parental hysteria, in 10 years time schools will still be cutting things up for teens!

I’d be complaining about them serving hot dogs, never would occur to me to cut them up though, I only read about cutting grapes well after my kids were young - kids were taught to bite into grapes when mine were young

Why don’t you take a paediatric first aid course so you’re better informed about genuine choking hazards?

Surely the choking hazard is the size of the bite the child takes which could happen with any solid food? What is special about a sausage? those sausages are very soft, mostly water and fat aren't they?

Also as others said I'd be more concerned that they are serving up those revolting things to my child full stop.

Presumably as it's in a hot-dog bun he will pick it up with his hands and bite into it - so a mixture of sausage and bread which isn't a particular choking hazard, depending on how much he bites off of course

Yes they should definitely be cutting them lengthways for all years.

The DfE guidance does suggest sausages should be cut lengthways to prevent choking

https://help-for-early-years-providers.education.gov.uk/health-and-wellbeing/food-safety

I guess a hot dog may count as a sausage?

Statistically the risk of choking is extremely small between the ages of 5 and 70. Almost all childhood choking incidents happen in 2-3 year olds. When they happen in older children it's usually related to a disability (pica, unsafe swallow). I suppose at 4 you could still make an argument that they are not yet 5 so there's a slightly elevated risk, but it's probably not the battle I'd choose.

This wouldn't cross my mind, and I'd have no issues with it at all.

I wouldn’t take an easily mitigated risk with other people’s children. Hotdogs are a similar size in diameter to children’s airways. Yes they should cut them up lengthways.

I would never have thought about cutting them up unless I had read this this morning devastating

https://mol.im/a/16133305

This

It wouldn't have occured to me, I wouldn't be delighted that hotdogs were being served though.

A bite of sausage is a genuine choking risk. It’s the perfect size to lodge in a windpipe. I speak from experience.

I never cut up grapes for my dc nor were they cut up for me. We’re all still alive.

This is what we have come to. The mind boggles.

I would be more upset they’re feeding my child hot dogs. Awful things. Can barely describe them as food……..